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The US Secretary of the Army, Daniel Driscoll, was an surprising diplomat for the Trump administration latest initiative to end the Russian invasion in Ukraine. His close relationship with JD Vance has positioned a close associate of the Eurosceptic VP at the center of Donald Trump recent push to settle the war.

Prior to his last week's trip to Kyiv, Driscoll was unrecognized as a negotiator or statesman, and his initial efforts to promote the deal to officials in Europe were described as turbulent.

His close ties with Vance, who he studied and shares a personal bond, indicate the rising influence of the isolationist vice-president in talks to end the Ukraine crisis.

Vance's Involvement in Ceasefire Negotiations

This was Vance who stepped in during Ukraine's president's disastrous first trip to the Trump White House in March and demanded he show Trump more respect. Currently, Ukraine is again pushing back against pressure from the US to agree to a quick deal that Ukrainian leaders have described as a surrender.

Following a tumultuous initial year in power, international decisions in the White House are said to be influenced by a handful of Trump's top advisers, including chief of staff Susie Wiles, conservative advisor Stephen Miller, diplomat Steve Witkoff, secretary of state Marco Rubio, and finally Vance.

Vance has been a outspoken supporter of the recent proposal, which was developed by Witkoff and Trump's relative Jared Kushner, alongside the Kremlin envoy Kirill Dmitriev.

“All objection of the peace framework the White House is developing either misunderstands the proposal or misstates some key situation on the ground,” the VP stated.

Initial Efforts and European Reactions

Vance's initial attempts at hammering out a ceasefire agreement with Russia, while also seeking to restore ties with Moscow, were fruitless and left his camp feeling disappointed with their Russian interlocutors. Leaders in Europe, meanwhile, were irritated by his early remarks, in which he accused them of running from their voters, who Vance claimed held anti-immigration and conservative positions close to those of Trump's own constituency.

But, the recently published peace deal closely resembled his positions, and he has been one of the most assertive spokespeople for the agreement in the government, even as the US has been under fire for accepting a ceasefire plan that largely resembles Vladimir Putin's maximalist demands.

In social media updates this weekend, Vance asserted that a peace deal would have to produce a ceasefire that respected Ukrainian sovereignty, be agreeable to both sides, and stop the conflict from restarting.

“A ceasefire will not be made by failed negotiators or officials living in a dream world,” he continued. “It could be made by smart people operating in the actual situation.”

Additionally, it was Vance who continued on the introduction of the ceasefire proposal in a phone call with Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Trump had primarily tasked his staff with securing a agreement on the peace deal before Thanksgiving this Thursday in the United States.

Rubio's Response and Private Concerns

That was a notably more enthusiastic endorsement of the plan than that given by the top diplomat and security advisor, Marco Rubio, a more traditional hawk in the government who has gone from a uncertain position inside the administration 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 refine the initial 28-point ceasefire proposal in order to make it more palatable to leaders in Kyiv.

But, his initial reaction to the deal was tepid:

“Stopping a complex and deadly war such as the one in Ukraine requires an thorough exchange of serious and realistic ideas,” Rubio wrote recently. “Furthermore, achieving a lasting peace will necessitate each party to consent to challenging but essential concessions. This is the reason we are and will persist to create a list of possible solutions for resolving this conflict drawing from feedback from both sides of this conflict.”

Behind closed doors, he was said to be much more doubtful of the plan. The Republican senator Mike Rounds said recently at the Halifax International Security Forum in Nova Scotia that Rubio had contacted lawmakers to explain that the agreement was merely a preliminary offer from the Russians and not an initiative pushed by the White House.

“Rubio did make 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 officials,” said Rounds. “It is not our recommendation, it is not our ceasefire proposal.”

Rubio moved quickly to fall in line. “The peace proposal was authored by the US,” he later wrote. “It is presented as a solid structure for continuing discussions. The proposal is based on feedback from the Moscow. But, it is additionally based on previous and current input from Ukraine.”