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The US Army Secretary, Daniel Driscoll, emerged as an surprising envoy for the Trump administration newest initiative to end the Russian invasion in Ukraine. Driscoll's strong relationship with Vice President Vance has positioned a key ally of the Euroskeptic VP at the forefront of President Trump's recent effort to conclude the war.

Before his recent visit to Kyiv, Driscoll was not known as a mediator or diplomat, and his initial efforts to sell the deal to officials in Europe were described as chaotic.

Driscoll's close relationship with Vance, with whom he studied and shares a close friendship, signal the rising influence of the isolationist VP in negotiations to resolve the Ukraine war.

The VP's Involvement in Peace Efforts

It was Vance who intervened during Volodymyr Zelenskyy disastrous first trip to the Trump White House in March and insisted he show Trump more courtesy. Currently, Ukraine is once again resisting demands from the US to agree to a swift settlement that local officials have described as a surrender.

Following a chaotic initial year in power, international actions in the White House are said to be shaped by a handful of Trump's key advisers, such as chief of staff Susie Wiles, conservative adviser Stephen Miller, envoy Steve Witkoff, secretary of state Marco Rubio, and of course Vance.

Vance has been a vocal supporter of the latest plan, which was developed by Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, alongside the Russian diplomat Kirill Dmitriev.

“All criticism of the peace framework the White House is working on either misunderstands the proposal or misrepresents some critical situation on the ground,” the VP stated.

Early Efforts and European Reactions

Vance's early efforts at negotiating a peace deal with Russia, while simultaneously seeking to restore ties with Moscow, were unsuccessful and left his camp feeling frustrated with their Russian interlocutors. Leaders in Europe, in turn, were irritated by his initial speeches, in which he charged them of ignoring their voters, who Vance said held restrictionist and right-leaning positions close to those of Trump's own supporters.

But, the new ceasefire proposal closely resembled his stances, and he has been one of the most assertive advocates for the agreement in the administration, even as the US has been criticized for endorsing a peace framework that largely echoes Vladimir Putin's maximalist demands.

In posts this weekend, Vance argued that a ceasefire agreement would have to produce a truce that honored Ukrainian sovereignty, be agreeable to each party, and stop the war from restarting.

“Peace won’t be made by unsuccessful diplomats or politicians living in a fantasy land,” he added. “An agreement could be made by smart people living in the real world.”

Additionally, it was Vance who continued on the introduction of the peace plan in a conversation with Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Trump had mainly instructed his staff with obtaining a signature on the peace deal prior to Thanksgiving this Thursday in the United States.

The Secretary of State's Reaction and Internal Concerns

That was a notably more enthusiastic endorsement of the proposal than that given by the secretary of state and security advisor, Marco Rubio, a more traditional hardliner in the administration who has transitioned from a shaky position inside the White House to more stable footing.

Rubio was a member of a US team that went to Geneva this past weekend to confer with Ukrainian officials to help moderate the initial 28-point peace plan in order to make it more palatable to leaders in Kyiv.

But, his initial response to the agreement was lukewarm:

“Ending a complex and deadly conflict such as the one in Ukraine requires an thorough discussion of serious and pragmatic ideas,” Rubio wrote over the weekend. “And, achieving a lasting peace will necessitate both sides to consent to difficult but necessary concessions. That is why we are and will persist to develop a set of possible ideas for resolving this war drawing from feedback from both sides of this conflict.”

In private, he was said to be much more doubtful of the proposal. The GOP lawmaker Mike Rounds said last week at the Halifax International Security Forum in Nova Scotia that Rubio had called legislators to explain that the agreement was merely a initial proposal from the Russians and not an initiative advocated by the White House.

“Rubio made a call to us this afternoon and I believe he made it very clear to us that we are the receivers of a offer that was presented to one of our representatives,” said Rounds. “The document is not our recommendation, it is not our peace plan.”

Rubio acted swiftly to fall in line. “This ceasefire plan was authored by the US,” he subsequently wrote. “It is offered as a strong structure for continuing negotiations. It is based on input from the Moscow. But, it is also informed by earlier and ongoing contributions from Ukraine.”