ST. LOUIS — A military expert from the Metro East shared his thoughts on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and its impact on Sunday.
William Enyart has more than 35 years of experience in military relations, is a retired major general in the U.S. Army, and is a former U.S. congressman representing the Metro East and southern Illinois. He served in the 113th Congress.
"In terms of what's happening today in Ukraine, it's an incredibly complex and dynamic system," he said.
Enyart served in Ukraine having commanded and observed its military.
“Seeing how far they have come from leaving the Soviet-dominated training they had had and seeing whether they were ready to move into a NATO role," he said.
Ukraine and its citizens have been bombarded by Russian attacks for the last three days.
U.S.-Soviet relations have put Enyart in rooms with Russians in rank.
“I found that the younger Russians were pretty liberal. They were pretty ready to talk to the West and become part of that dynamic capitalistic system that we have. The older generals. Particularly the general that was in charge was very rigid. Very dogmatic,” he explained.
Enyart believed the biggest concern should be Vladimir Putin's threats.
Those were on "high alert" in response to recent sanctions and "aggressive statements” from NATO countries.
“The problem is no one really knows whether Putin is still rational or not,” Enyart said.
The former army general weighed in on President Biden's role as the key player in NATO.
“Number one: defensive military capability. Give them the tools with which to defend themselves and number two. Don't allow the Russians to so constrict their economy that the country fails."
To help out in the situation, Enyart urged that U.S. citizens let their congressmen and senators know that they support Ukraine.