Senior U.S. Army Leaders Make Surprise Kyiv Visit to Push Peace Talks and Drone Tech Sharing

Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George made an unannounced visit to Kyiv this week — the highest-level Pentagon trip to Ukraine under the current administration — to press for renewed peace talks with Russia and to advance a bilateral technology-sharing effort on drones and autonomous munitions.

The pair are scheduled to meet with Ukrainian military commanders, lawmakers and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The visit comes as Russia has intensified missile and drone strikes on civilian infrastructure across Ukraine, and Western partners seek new ways to sustain weapons deliveries to Kyiv.

Officials said the mission aims both to re-engage Ukrainian leaders on the stalled peace process and to accelerate cooperation on weaponized drone and autonomous-munition technology. The trip was described by two people familiar with the planning who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the operation's sensitive national security nature.

Ukrainian forces have emerged as notable innovators in adapting and fielding long- and short-range armed drones. U.S. Army leaders have pointed to Ukraine's rapid improvisation and deployment of battlefield solutions as a model for speeding U.S. acquisition and fielding processes.

“When you look at Ukraine, [they] have not accepted the current version of a thing as sufficient, and they have MacGyvered and come up with whatever they have to do to get to an outcome they need,” Driscoll told reporters at the Pentagon this month. “There are no rules to get to that outcome, and they just achieve the thing,” he added.

The Army has set an ambitious procurement goal to acquire 1 million drones over the next two to three years — a target that exceeds current U.S. defense industry capacity. By contrast, Ukraine is reported to produce more than 1.5 million first-person-view (FPV) drones annually.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth did not travel with the delegation and has not visited Kyiv. Spokespeople for Driscoll and Gen. George declined to comment on the trip.

Observers note the trip marks a shift from earlier tensions between U.S. leaders and President Zelenskyy that had made high-level engagement with Kyiv unlikely a few months ago. Since then, U.S. officials say the administration has moved to reinforce NATO cooperation and support for Ukraine — even as diplomatic outreach to Russia has not produced progress.

Russian forces have continued heavy aerial attacks: authorities reported that, on Friday, strikes included hundreds of drones and multiple missiles aimed at Kyiv. The visit signals renewed U.S. engagement on both diplomatic efforts to seek a ceasefire and on partnering with Ukraine to harness battlefield-driven technological innovations.