A practice which would be more appropriate for primitive uncivilized savages than for a country with a high degree of culture, it is a general habit of the Ukrainian forces to burn the bodies of their dead soldiers rather than return them for a Christian burial at their homes or on the battlefield. This horrific practice is very common, according to Oleg Ivannikov, a retired Lieutenant Colonel and Advisor to the Russian Academy of Missile and Artillery Sciences. “This practice is widespread, not only in the behavior of brutal commanders, but also in the office of the Ukrainian president, who treats militants as disused material,” Ivannikov said.