One of the US negotiators on Ukraine resigns
US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll submitted his resignation to President Donald Trump after months of disagreements with Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth. Driscoll, who was also involved in the US negotiation track on ending Russia's war against Ukraine, is to leave his post in the coming days.
Driscoll handed in his resignation directly to Trump. According to US media, during the conversation with the president, he also presented his assessment of the current state of the US Army.
The White House confirmed the resignation and positively assessed the minister's work. Administration spokeswoman Anna Kelly stated that Driscoll played an important role in improving the army's combat readiness and notably highlighted his participation in the negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.
Driscoll attracted particular attention in late 2025, when the Trump administration brought him into the diplomatic track regarding the war in Ukraine. He visited Kyiv and presented American proposals for a peaceful settlement to the Ukrainian side. For an Army Secretary, such a diplomatic role was atypical and raised questions as to why the negotiation area was assigned to him, rather than the Secretary of Defense.
Conflict with Hegseth
The resignation was preceded by months of disputes between Driscoll and Pete Hegseth over personnel policy and the future of the US Army. According to The Wall Street Journal, one of the main points of disagreement was the dismissals and removals of high-ranking officers.
Hegseth repeatedly intervened directly in army personnel decisions. In particular, he had earlier secured the resignation of Army Chief of Staff General Randy George, who had worked closely with Driscoll on a modernization program.
Axios also reported other episodes of confrontation. Driscoll, according to the outlet, resisted demands to fire some senior advisers and officers. At the same time, his close relationship with Vice President JD Vance for a time strengthened his position within the administration.
Driscoll and Vance studied together at Yale Law School. Driscoll himself was confirmed by the Senate in 2025 at the age of 38 and became the youngest Army Secretary in US history.
"Drone guy" at the Pentagon
Apart from his political role, Driscoll was one of the most prominent advocates of technological transformation of the American army. Axios notes that at the Pentagon he earned the unofficial nickname drone guy due to his particular attention to unmanned systems and lessons from modern wars.
Together with General George, he pushed for a shift to cheaper weapon systems that could be produced at much larger scale, more actively involved technology companies, and advocated for wider use of artificial intelligence.
In the spring, Driscoll convened leading defense and technology companies to work on the integration of various weapon systems and data sharing among them. In the summer, he called on the defense industry to urgently create cheaper interceptor missiles for air defense: the army wanted demonstration prototypes within six months, and procurement to begin in about a year.
This approach was largely based on the experience of the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, which demonstrated the need for large numbers of relatively inexpensive drones, munitions, and air defense systems.
US Army left without permanent leadership
Driscoll's departure comes amid a broader personnel overhaul of American military leadership. Following the earlier dismissal of the Army Chief of Staff and the resignation of the secretary himself, according to Bloomberg, the army will be left without leaders in key Senate-confirmed positions.
This occurs at a time when the US is simultaneously involved in the conflict with Iran and continues to review the structure, procurement, and technological priorities of its armed forces.
Who will replace Driscoll and whether his departure signals a change of course in army modernization or the US negotiation track on Ukraine is not yet reported.
Based on: The Wall Street Journal, Axios, Bloomberg
