US army secretary to leave role

The US army secretary is leaving his post, the White House has announced, marking yet another top military figure to depart under Donald Trump's regime.

Dan Driscoll has been in the job for 18 months, and no reason has been given for his exit. He's reportedly endured a tense relationship with Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth.

A source told Reuters news agency that Mr Driscoll had "brought up concerns with the administration surrounding ​Army transformation and readiness and Hegseth's blocking those efforts specifically by firing the generals who were responsible".

The US army is yet to comment on the news, which ​was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.

The Trump administration has seen a large amount of turnover among America's military leadership. Last year the president pushed out the country's most senior commander and several other admirals and generals.

Since the war with Iran began in February, Mr Trump has also lost his navy secretary, John Phelan; director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard; and senior counterterrorism official, Joe Kent.

Mr Hegseth has in recent months also personally disposed of the army's top uniformed leader, Randy George, and its commander for Europe and Africa, Christopher Donahue.

An ally of Mr George, Mr Driscoll had lamented his departure, telling Congress in April that he and his family had driven to Mr George's house following his resignation and "all gave him a hug".

"That being said, the civilian leadership, the design of our system, is that they get to pick the leaders that they want," Mr Driscoll added.

A 'change agent'

The White House said in a statement that Mr Driscoll had provided "outstanding leadership during historic military operations", and he left with the US army "more powerful than ever".

In his role as army secretary, Mr Driscoll was tapped for the role of key negotiator to try to end the war between Russia and Ukraine.

He was also a major force behind trying to cut the red tape for military contractors to quickly develop more drones and counter-drone capabilities.

An Iraq war veteran, Mr Driscoll is a former adviser to vice president JD Vance, whom he met at Yale Law School.

When nominating Mr Driscoll in 2024, Mr Trump called him "a disruptor and change agent".

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