US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll has stepped down after 18 months on the job, the White House said.
No official reason was provided for the departure of Driscoll, an ally of Vice President JD Vance, though tensions with Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth have been widely reported amid continuing upheaval across the military services.
"Secretary Driscoll has been highly effective in advancing President Trump's agenda to Make America Strong Again at the Department of the Army by providing outstanding leadership during historic military operations, restoring an emphasis on readiness and lethality, assisting with negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, and more," White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said in a statement.
Pentagon dismissals
The departure comes amid a period of significant turnover in senior Army leadership under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. In April, General Randy George, the Army’s highest-ranking uniformed officer, was removed from his post as part of a broader series of leadership changes.
The commander of US Army Europe and Africa, General Christopher Donahue, also stepped down unexpectedly in June.
Acting Chief of Staff General Christopher LaNeve has since rolled back a key drone modernisation programme championed by Driscoll.
Under LaNeve, an infantry battalion in Europe that had been assembling its own tactical drones was instructed to halt development and return to standard duties.
In April, the Pentagon abruptly announced the departure of Navy Secretary John Phelan, the first service secretary to exit during Trump's second term, alongside several other dismissed flag officers.
Driscoll, an Iraq War veteran, technology investor, and former adviser to Vance from their time at Yale Law School, was nominated in late 2024 and confirmed by the US Senate in a 66-28 vote in February 2025.
During his tenure, Driscoll took on an expanded diplomatic brief as a negotiator in efforts surrounding the Russia-Ukraine war, whilst pushing to reduce procurement bureaucracy for military drone and counter-drone systems.
