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America's Secretary of the Army, Dan Driscoll, emerged as an unlikely envoy for the Trump administration latest proposal to resolve the Russian invasion in Ukraine. Driscoll's close relationship with JD Vance has positioned a close associate of the Euroskeptic vice-president at the forefront of President Trump's recent push to conclude the conflict.

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

Driscoll's close relationship with Vance, who he attended Yale and maintains a personal bond, indicate the resurgence of the isolationist VP in talks to resolve the Ukraine crisis.

Vance's Role in Ceasefire Negotiations

It was Vance who stepped in during Ukraine's president's rocky first trip to the White House in March and demanded he show Trump more courtesy. Now, Ukraine is once again resisting demands from the US to accept a swift deal that Ukrainian leaders have described as a capitulation.

Following a tumultuous first year in power, foreign policy actions in the White House are reportedly influenced by a handful of Trump's key advisers, such as chief of staff Susie Wiles, rightwing advisor Stephen Miller, envoy Steve Witkoff, secretary of state Marco Rubio, and finally Vance.

Vance has been a vocal advocate of the latest proposal, which was crafted by Witkoff and Trump's relative Jared Kushner, together with the Russian diplomat Kirill Dmitriev.

“All objection of the ceasefire plan the White House is working on either misunderstands the framework or misrepresents some critical reality on the ground,” Vance stated.

Early Attempts and EU Responses

Vance's initial attempts at hammering out a ceasefire agreement with Russia, while simultaneously attempting to restore ties with Moscow, were unsuccessful and left his camp feeling disappointed with their Russian counterparts. European officials, meanwhile, were irritated by his initial remarks, in which he charged them of ignoring their constituents, who Vance claimed held restrictionist and right-leaning positions close to those of Trump's own supporters.

However, the new ceasefire proposal closely resembled his stances, and he has been one of the most assertive spokespeople for the agreement in the administration, even as the US has been under fire for accepting a peace framework that mostly echoes Vladimir Putin's extreme terms.

In social media updates this weekend, Vance asserted that a peace deal would have to establish a truce that honored Ukrainian independence, be agreeable to each party, and prevent the conflict from resuming.

“A ceasefire will not be made by failed diplomats or politicians residing in a dream world,” he added. “An agreement could be made by intelligent people living in the actual situation.”

Additionally, it was Vance who followed up on the introduction of the ceasefire proposal in a phone call with Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Trump had mainly tasked his staff with securing a agreement on the ceasefire accord prior to Thanksgiving this Thursday in the United States.

The Secretary of State's Response and Private Concerns

Vance's stance was a notably more enthusiastic endorsement of the plan than that given by the top diplomat and security advisor, Marco Rubio, a more conventional hawk in the administration who has gone from a uncertain position inside the White House to more stable standing.

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

However, his first reaction to the deal was tepid:

“Ending a complicated and deadly conflict such as the one in Ukraine demands an extensive exchange of serious and realistic ideas,” Rubio wrote over the weekend. “And, achieving a durable peace will necessitate both sides to consent to difficult but essential compromises. That is why we are and will persist to develop a list of potential ideas for resolving this war based on input from each party of this war.”

Behind closed doors, he was said to be much more skeptical of the plan. The Republican senator Mike Rounds stated last week at the Halifax International Security Forum in Nova Scotia that Rubio had called legislators to clarify that the deal was merely a preliminary offer from the Russians and not an plan advocated 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 presented to one of our representatives,” said Rounds. “It is not our recommendation, it is not our peace plan.”

Rubio moved quickly to fall in line. “This ceasefire plan was written by the US,” he later stated. “It is presented as a solid framework for continuing negotiations. It is based on input from the Moscow. However, it is additionally informed by earlier and current input from Ukraine.”