The Diplomatic Mission of the Army Secretary
The high-profile visit of Army Secretary Dan Driscoll to Ukraine this week to deliver the latest peace plan from the Trump administration has transformed the military leader into a key international negotiator – a stark contrast to his boss, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who spent this time in Washington attending meetings at the White House and sending angry messages to Democrats on social media.
Driscoll, a close friend of Vice President JD Vance, met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday and planned talks with NATO allies. The high-profile role for Driscoll – whom President Donald Trump refers to as his "drone guy" due to his enthusiasm for advanced technologies – is symbolic of the growing weight of the Army leader within the administration.
Rising Star
Driscoll is increasingly becoming the public face of ambitious projects and often presents the administration's plans to journalists, unlike Hegseth, who has focused on less glamorous tasks related to procurement reform and military physical training and has removed most journalists from the Pentagon.
"There is not much trust in Hegseth to convey these messages to key leaders. There is now more trust in Dan."
– said a person familiar with the dynamics of the administration.
Biography and Connections
Driscoll, who attended Yale Law School with Vance and remains close friends with him, served in the Army for three and a half years. This included a deployment to Iraq as a cavalry reconnaissance platoon leader in the 10th Mountain Division. He later worked in investment banking in North Carolina.
Formally, his job as Army Secretary is predominantly bureaucratic. He oversees the service's annual budget and its workforce of over a million active-duty service members, National Guard, and reserves, as well as over 330,000 civilian employees.
Expanding Authority
But he has begun to take on a broader role, which often brings him to the White House. He simultaneously serves as the head of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and is responsible for deploying the National Guard at the border and in American cities.
"Dan's relationship with JD has certainly helped him get the job, but all his success is based on merit. He just does his job damn well."
– said a person close to the White House.
"Driscoll has been one of the most impressive members of the Trump administration since his confirmation. Although he had few connections in Trump's orbit prior to his nomination, aside from the Vice President, he has built strong relationships in the West Wing over the past year and is respected among senior staff."
– added another person close to the White House.
Contrast with Hegseth
The growing trust of the White House in Driscoll seems to differ from the attitude towards Hegseth, whose trip to the Pacific last month was the first time since May that he undertook a largely solo foreign tour. There is also friction between Hegseth and the White House regarding his choices for senior positions at the Pentagon, including Hegseth's chief of staff, Ricky Buria, with whom administrative officials have had conflicts.
White House Chief of Staff Suzy Wiles "does not distrust Pete, but questions his judgment regarding Ricky," – said a person close to the White House.
The White House denied any tension. "Suzy has a long-standing relationship with Secretary Hegseth and values him both personally and professionally. He is doing a great job leading the Pentagon. Dan Driscoll is also highly respected, and his talent and experience prove that he is the perfect person to help the administration achieve peace in the war between Russia and Ukraine," – said spokesperson Anna Kelly.
Mission in Ukraine
While Hegseth had no public events on Thursday, Driscoll met with Zelensky for an hour in the gilded office of the Ukrainian president in the Mariinsky Palace. He was welcomed at a reception at the residence of the U.S. ambassador in one of the city's trendiest neighborhoods.
"In the last 36 hours, we have seen a truly impressive pace of diplomatic activity."
– said Julie Davis, the U.S. Chargé d'Affaires in Ukraine, to reporters in Kyiv after the meeting with Zelensky. The Americans "discussed an aggressive timeline for these efforts."
Future Plans
Driscoll will further meet with NATO allies in Europe and attempt to arrange a meeting with Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov to advance a peace agreement that the White House has avoided all year, according to a defense official familiar with the planning.
His trip to Kyiv was initially aimed at securing an agreement around some of Ukraine's most innovative drone technologies, said the official, which is a priority for Trump.
However, the visit became much more significant after a meeting at the White House last week when Trump gave his enthusiastic blessing for Driscoll to take on important new diplomatic duties. Driscoll was at the White House for another reason when the directive came through.
A defense official described Driscoll's meetings as "equally" about battlefield innovation and diplomacy. "The U.S. Army is a proven ally of Ukraine," – said the person.
Driscoll's expanded foreign policy role in the administration may continue. Another administrative official said Driscoll's goal is to achieve "incremental progress" during his three-day visit to Ukraine. "I don't think he expects to finalize an agreement. He expects to work through a set of its parts or just move the matter forward."
