Army Secretary Dan Driscoll arrives in Kyiv for Russia-Ukraine peace talks

Army Secretary Dan Driscoll arrived in Kiev on Wednesday as the US planned to resume talks to end the Russia-Ukraine war.

Driscoll, accompanied by Army Chief of Staff General Randy George, visited the war-torn country before the Secretary of War Pete Hegsethwho has not yet traveled to Ukraine or met with President Volodymyr Zelensky. However, such a trip would require Hegseth’s consent.

Also traveling with the secretary is Lt. Gen. Chris Donahue, the Commanding General of the Army for Europe and Africa; Maj. Gen. Michael Buzzard, commanding general, Security Assistance Group – Ukraine; Command Sgt. Maj. Michael Weiner of Army Special Operations Command; and Col. Dave Butler.

The group will meet with Zelensky, leaders of the Ukrainian military, defense industry and lawmakers.

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“Secretary Driscoll and his team arrived in Kiev this morning on behalf of the government on a fact-finding mission to meet with Ukrainian officials and discuss efforts to end the war,” Butler said in a statement Wednesday confirming the trip.

The White House has quietly developed a new peace blueprint. Envoy Steve Witkoff and Russian negotiator Kirill Dmitriev held three days of talks in Miami in late October, Axios said reported on Tuesday.

The administration has appointed Driscoll as a special envoy to jump-start the peace process, although he is not bringing the reported proposal to Ukraine, a defense official told Fox News Digital.

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His team is working to secure a future meeting with the Russian side, but such engagement is not expected during this trip, the official added.

Driscoll and his team are also meeting with leaders of the Ukrainian defense industry to discuss a possible deal to share drone technology. The Army has made a point of learning from Ukraine’s successes in developing and producing armed drones, which have proven crucial for attacks deep behind enemy lines.

“We want the Ukrainians to build relationships with the American industrial base because we want to learn the lessons of the war,” the official said.

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The Army wants to produce a million drones in the next two to three years – a major task for the US industrial base.

Ukraine has the capacity to produce 8 million drones per year, Zelensky said in July.

Meanwhile, Zelensky is in Turkey to resume direct talks with Russia.

The conflict, which he once believed could end in 24 hours, has increasingly angered the president Donald Trumpwho oscillated between sympathy for Russia’s position and support for Ukraine.

However, his administration just approved another sale of Patriot missile launchers and related parts to Ukraine worth $105 million, and Ukraine said it was using U.S. Army long-range tactical missile systems to strike deep inside Russia — which would mark a reversal of U.S. policy that limited the use of its resources to attack on Russian territory.

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Observers in Ukraine remain skeptical that Zelensky will be more flexible in a deal than in the past.

With political pressure mounting at home over a corruption scandal in the energy sector that is ensnaring members of his inner circle, Zelensky’s government may soon face a challenge from the nationalist right – political factions even less accepting of compromise.

“It’s a political death knell if he accepts a bad deal,” said one foreign policy analyst. “His party is in revolt (not yet fully public) and a unity government with more nationalist parts of the opposition is unlikely to agree to this.”