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Reports of an upcoming US-Russia presidential meeting have been overstated, it seems.

Only a few days after President Trump announced he planned to meet Russian President Putin in the Hungarian capital - "in approximately a fortnight" - the summit has been put off without a new date.

A preliminary get-together by the two nations' leading diplomats has been cancelled, as well.

"I don't want to have a wasted meeting," President Trump informed reporters at the executive mansion on a recent weekday. "I don't want a pointless effort, so I will observe what happens."

• Trump states he did not want a 'unproductive session' after arrangement for Putin talks postponed
• Letdown in Kyiv as President Zelensky leaves White House without results

The frequently changing summit is another twist in Trump's efforts to broker an end to hostilities in the Eastern European nation – a topic of increased attention for the US president after he arranged a ceasefire and hostage release deal in the Palestinian territory.

While making remarks in Egypt last week to commemorate that truce deal, Trump turned to his lead diplomatic negotiator, with a new request.

"We have to get the Russian situation resolved," he said.

However, the conditions that converged to make a Gaza breakthrough possible for Witkoff and his team may be difficult to duplicate in a Ukraine war that has been ongoing for nearing four years.

Less Leverage

According to the lead negotiator, the key to unlocking a agreement was Israel's decision to strike Hamas negotiators in Qatar. It was a move that infuriated US partners in the Arab world but gave the president leverage to pressure Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu into reaching an agreement.

The US president benefited from a history of supporting Israel dating back to his initial presidency, encompassing his choice to relocate the American embassy to Jerusalem, to change America's position on the legality of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and, in recent times, his support for Israeli defense operations against Iran.

The US president, in fact, is more popular among Israelis than Netanyahu – a situation that provided him with unique influence over the Israeli leader.

Combine Trump's connections in politics and business to influential Arab nations in the region, and he had a wealth of diplomatic muscle to force an deal.

Regarding the conflict in Ukraine, by contrast, the president has significantly reduced influence. Over the past nine months, he has vacillated between efforts to pressure the Russian president and then Zelensky, all with minimal visible progress.

Trump has warned to enact new sanctions on Russia's oil and gas sales and to provide Ukraine with new long-range weapons. But he has also acknowledged that such actions could disrupt the world's financial stability and intensify the war.

Meanwhile, the US leader has publicly berated Zelensky, halting briefly information exchange with the country and suspending weapon deliveries to the country - only to then back off in the face of worried European partners who caution a defeat of Ukraine could destabilise the entire region.

The president loves to tout his ability to sit down and hammer out deals, but his personal discussions with the Russian and Ukrainian leaders have not appeared to advance the war any nearer a resolution.

The Russian president may in fact be exploiting the US leader's wish for a settlement – and belief in in-person deal-making - as a means of manipulating him.

In July, Russia's leader consented to a summit in Alaska just as it seemed probable that Trump would sign off on legislative penalties backed by Senate Republicans. That legislation was afterwards delayed.

Last week, as news emerged that the US administration was considering seriously sending long-range missiles and Patriot anti-air batteries to Ukraine, the president of Russia phoned Trump who then touted the potential summit in Budapest.

The next day, the president welcomed Ukraine's leader at the executive residence, but departed empty-handed after a reportedly tense meeting.

The US leader maintained that he was not being played by the Russian president.

"As you are aware, I've been played throughout my career by skilled operators, and I emerged really well," he remarked.

However the Ukrainian leader subsequently made note of the sequence of events.

"As soon as the matter of long-range mobility became a less accessible for Ukraine – for Ukraine – the Russian side almost automatically became less engaged in negotiations," he said.

So, in a short period, the president has shifted from considering the idea of sending missiles to Ukraine to planning a meeting in Hungary with Russia's leader and confidentially pressuring the Ukrainian president to cede the entire Donbas region – even land Russian forces has been unable to conquer.

He has ultimately decided on calling for a truce along present frontlines – something the Russian government has refused to accept.

On the campaign trail last year, Trump vowed that he could end the Ukraine war in a matter of hours. He has subsequently discarded that commitment, saying that concluding the hostilities is turning out harder than he expected.

It has been a rare acknowledgement of the limits of his authority – and the difficulty of finding a peace plan when both parties desires, or is able to, give up the fight.