A baby-faced 20-year-old, Nikita Avrov was killed in Ukraine while serving as a gunner on a Russian tank.
At his funeral on Tuesday, those giving eulogies leave no room for doubt: the private died for a good cause, for his Russian fatherland.
In front of his family’s house in the small town of Luga, 150 kilometres (93 miles) south of Saint Petersburg, Avrov’s casket is briefly put on display, surrounded by funeral wreaths, while the flag of his motorised infantry division flies alongside.
