NYT: To push for a quick peace deal, Driscoll warns Europe about Russia's missile buildup
Dan Driscoll in Kyiv (Photo: Rustem Umerov / Telegram)

Secretary of the U.S. Army Dan Driscoll, promoting "peace plan" The U.S. Secretary of State warned Europeans that Russia is building up missiles. This was reported by The New York Times, citing two unnamed Western officials.

According to the American newspaper, Driscoll used the growing threat from Moscow as a way to "sell a quick peace deal that is unfavorable to Ukraine."

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"It was a stark warning to the skeptical audience of Western diplomats who gathered in Kyiv last week to hear the Trump administration present its Russia-friendly peace plan for Ukraine," the article says.

Moscow has been launching missiles at Ukraine as it produces them, but now Russia is producing enough to amass a growing arsenal of long-range weapons, Driscoll said.

According to NYT interlocutors, the hints were clear: a quick settlement is needed because of the growing missile threat that could devastate Ukraine and spread beyond its borders.

Western officials who attended the meeting with Driscoll called the Russian military buildup alarming and told the NYT that his warning "resonated."

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The article says that the US assessment that Moscow is amassing missiles is supported by data from the Ukrainian army and analysts' calculations. They argue that Russia could use its arsenals to destroy Ukraine's already damaged energy infrastructure. Russian strikes could reduce Ukraine's stockpile of air defense missiles and leave areas such as Kyiv vulnerable.

Russia could also threaten other European countries with missile or drone attacks.

According to Ukrainian military intelligence, by June 2025, Russia will expanded industrial capacity, accumulating about 2,900 cruise and ballistic missiles per year. These include Iskander ballistic missiles, hypersonic Daggers, and Kalibr cruise missiles, as well as anti-ship missiles that Russia has repurposed to strike land targets.