Sounds like this soldier may have had family ties to Ukraine.
I wondered about that for a moment. But it sounds like he might have missed the “high” of being in a war zone, and the camaraderie. And perhaps very idealistic.
He probably took French in high school before he quit to join the army. He could have been learning Ukrainian and Russian in preparation for going to Ukraine. They got apps for that now. His father said “proficient” not “fluent”. What does he think “proficient” is? Enough to sort of get along in everyday conversation?
It says his father served in the Gulf War in 1991. This young man may have had a desire to live up to his father’s heroism or whatever, prove himself. I really can’t know, just guessing. He did quit high school to join the army. Well, he succeeded in making Mom and Dad proud of him (although they most likely already were before he went off to Ukraine). Far be it from me to want to take that away from grieving parents. It’s likely he had a good heart, believed in his cause and meant well. And, given the rhetoric of our leaders and the media, thought he was defending freedom and democracy and Western civilization.