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The US Secretary of the Army, Dan Driscoll, emerged as an unlikely diplomat for the White House's newest proposal to end the Russian invasion in Ukraine. Driscoll's close connection with Vice President Vance has placed a close associate of the Eurosceptic VP at the forefront of Donald Trump latest push to settle the conflict.

Prior to his recent trip to Kyiv, Driscoll was not known as a negotiator or diplomat, and his initial attempts to promote the deal to European policymakers were described as chaotic.

His strong ties with Vance, with whom he attended Yale and shares a personal bond, signal the resurgence of the isolationist VP in negotiations to resolve the Ukraine crisis.

Vance's Involvement in Peace Efforts

It was Vance who stepped in during Volodymyr Zelenskyy rocky first trip to the Trump White House in March and demanded he show Trump more respect. Now, Ukraine is again resisting pressure from the US to accept a quick deal that local officials have described as a capitulation.

Following a chaotic initial year in power, foreign policy actions in the White House are reportedly shaped by a small group of Trump's key advisers, such as chief of staff Susie Wiles, rightwing advisor Stephen Miller, diplomat Steve Witkoff, secretary of state Marco Rubio, and of course Vance.

Vance has been a vocal supporter of the recent proposal, which was developed by Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, alongside the Kremlin envoy Kirill Dmitriev.

“All objection of the peace framework the White House is developing either misinterprets the framework or misrepresents some critical situation on the ground,” the VP stated.

Early Efforts and EU Responses

Vance's initial attempts at hammering out a peace deal with Russia, while also attempting to restore relations with Moscow, were unsuccessful and left his camp feeling frustrated with their Russian interlocutors. Leaders in Europe, in turn, were angered by his initial speeches, in which he accused them of running from their voters, who Vance claimed held restrictionist and right-leaning views close to those of Trump's own supporters.

However, the recently published peace deal closely resembled his positions, and he has been one of the most forceful spokespeople for the deal in the administration, even as the US has been criticized for accepting a peace framework that largely echoes Vladimir Putin's extreme terms.

In social media updates this weekend, Vance asserted that a ceasefire agreement would have to produce a truce that respected Ukrainian independence, be acceptable to both sides, and prevent the war from restarting.

“Peace won’t be made by unsuccessful negotiators or officials living in a dream world,” he continued. “It could be made by intelligent people living in the actual situation.”

Additionally, it was Vance who continued on the presentation of the ceasefire proposal in a conversation with Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Trump had mainly tasked his staff with obtaining a signature on the ceasefire accord before Thanksgiving this Thursday in the United States.

The Secretary of State's Response and Private Doubts

That was a notably more full-throated endorsement of the plan than that given by the top diplomat and national security adviser, Marco Rubio, a more conventional hardliner in the government who has transitioned from a shaky stature inside the White House to more firm standing.

Rubio was part of a US delegation that traveled to Geneva this past weekend to meet with Ukrainian officials to help moderate the initial 28-point ceasefire proposal in order to make it more acceptable to leaders in Kyiv.

However, his initial reaction to the deal was lukewarm:

“Ending a complicated and violent conflict such as the one in Ukraine demands an extensive discussion of substantive and pragmatic ideas,” Rubio wrote recently. “And, achieving a durable peace will necessitate each party to agree to difficult but necessary compromises. That is why we are and will continue to create a list of possible ideas for resolving this war based on input from both sides of this conflict.”

In private, he was reportedly much more doubtful of the plan. The GOP lawmaker Mike Rounds said recently at the Halifax International Security Forum in Nova Scotia that Rubio had called legislators to clarify that the deal was just a initial offer from the Russians and not an plan pushed by the White House.

“The Secretary made a call to us this afternoon and I believe he emphasized to us that we are the receivers of a proposal that was delivered to one of our representatives,” said Rounds. “It is not our suggestion, it is not our peace plan.”

Rubio moved quickly to fall in line. “This ceasefire plan was authored by the US,” he later stated. “The framework is offered as a strong structure for continuing discussions. It is derived from feedback from the Russian side. But, it is additionally informed by earlier and ongoing contributions from Ukraine.”