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The US Army Secretary, Daniel Driscoll, was an surprising diplomat for the White House's latest initiative to end the conflict in Ukraine. Driscoll's strong connection with JD Vance has placed a close associate of the Eurosceptic vice-president at the forefront of Donald Trump recent push to settle the war.

Before his recent trip to Kyiv, Driscoll was not known as a negotiator or diplomat, and his initial efforts to sell the agreement to European policymakers were labeled chaotic.

His strong relationship with Vance, who he attended Yale and maintains a close friendship, indicate the resurgence of the isolationist VP in negotiations to resolve the Ukraine crisis.

The VP's Involvement in Ceasefire 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 respect. Now, Ukraine is again resisting demands from the US to agree to a quick deal that Ukrainian leaders have described as a capitulation.

After a tumultuous first year in office, foreign policy decisions in the White House are reportedly shaped by a small group of Trump's key aides, including chief of staff Susie Wiles, rightwing adviser Stephen Miller, diplomat Steve Witkoff, State Department head Marco Rubio, and of course Vance.

Vance has been a outspoken supporter of the latest plan, which was developed by Witkoff and Trump's relative Jared Kushner, alongside the Russian diplomat Kirill Dmitriev.

“All criticism of the ceasefire plan the administration is developing either misunderstands the proposal or misstates some key situation on the ground,” the VP stated.

Initial Attempts and EU Reactions

Vance's initial attempts at hammering out a ceasefire agreement with Russia, while simultaneously attempting to restore relations with Moscow, were unsuccessful and left his team feeling disappointed with their Russian interlocutors. European officials, in turn, were angered by his initial speeches, in which he accused them of running from their voters, who Vance claimed held anti-immigration and conservative views 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 under fire for endorsing a ceasefire plan that mostly resembles Vladimir Putin's maximalist demands.

In social media updates this past weekend, Vance argued that a ceasefire agreement would have to produce a truce that honored Ukrainian sovereignty, be acceptable to each party, and prevent the conflict from restarting.

“A ceasefire will not be made by unsuccessful diplomats or officials residing in a dream world,” he continued. “It might be made by smart people living in the real world.”

Additionally, it was Vance who continued on the presentation of the peace plan in a conversation with Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Trump had primarily instructed his team with securing a signature on the ceasefire accord prior to Thanksgiving this Thursday in the United States.

Rubio's Response and Internal Doubts

Vance's stance was a notably more full-throated endorsement of the plan than that expressed by the secretary of state and security advisor, Marco Rubio, a more traditional hawk in the administration who has transitioned from a uncertain position inside the White House to more stable footing.

Rubio was a member of a US team that traveled to Geneva this weekend to meet with Ukrainian officials to help refine the original 28-point ceasefire proposal in order to make it more palatable to authorities in Kyiv.

However, his first reaction to the agreement was tepid:

“Stopping a complicated and violent war such as the one in Ukraine requires an extensive exchange of serious and realistic proposals,” Rubio wrote recently. “And, achieving a lasting ceasefire will necessitate both sides to agree to challenging but essential compromises. This is the reason we are and will continue to develop a set of possible ideas for ending this war based on feedback from each party of this war.”

In private, 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 deal was merely a preliminary proposal from the Russians and not an initiative pushed by the White House.

“Rubio made a call to us this afternoon and I believe he emphasized to us that we are the recipients of a proposal that was presented to one of our representatives,” said Rounds. “The document is not our suggestion, it is not our ceasefire proposal.”

Rubio acted swiftly to align himself. “The peace proposal was written by the US,” he subsequently wrote. “It is offered as a strong framework for ongoing negotiations. The proposal is derived from input from the Russian side. However, it is also informed by earlier and current contributions from Ukraine.”