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

Just days after Donald Trump announced he intended to meet Russia's leader Vladimir Putin in the Hungarian capital - "in approximately a fortnight" - the high-level talks has been put off without a new date.

A initial meeting by the both countries' top diplomats has been called off, as well.

"I don't want to have a wasted meeting," Donald Trump informed the press at the executive mansion on a recent weekday. "I don't want a waste of time, so I will observe what transpires."

• Donald Trump says he did not want a 'unproductive session' after plan for Putin talks shelved
• Letdown in Ukraine's capital as Zelensky departs Washington without results

The frequently changing meeting is just the latest twist in Trump's attempts to broker an end to war in Ukraine – a topic of renewed focus for the American leader after he arranged a truce and hostage release deal in the Palestinian territory.

During a speech in the North African country last week to celebrate that ceasefire agreement, Trump turned to his lead diplomatic negotiator, with a new request.

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

However, the circumstances that aligned to make a Gaza breakthrough achievable for Witkoff and his team may be challenging to replicate in a conflict in Ukraine that has been ongoing for nearing several years.

Reduced Influence

According to the lead negotiator, the crucial element to unlocking a deal was Israel's decision to attack representatives of Hamas in the Gulf state. It was a move that angered America's Arab allies but provided the president bargaining power to pressure Israel's leader Benjamin Netanyahu into making a deal.

The US president benefited from a history of supporting the Israeli state dating back to his initial presidency, including his choice to relocate the US embassy to Jerusalem, to alter US policy on the legality of Jewish communities in the occupied territories and, in recent times, his backing for Israeli defense operations against Iran.

The US president, actually, is better regarded among Israelis than their prime minister – a position that gave him special sway over the nation's head.

Combine the president's connections in politics and business to key Arab players in the area, and he had a wealth of diplomatic muscle to secure an agreement.

Regarding the conflict in Ukraine, on the other hand, the president has much less leverage. Over the past nine months, he has swung between efforts to pressure Putin and then the Ukrainian leader, all with minimal visible progress.

Trump has warned to enact additional penalties on Russian energy exports and to provide Ukraine with new long-range weapons. But he has also recognised that such actions could disrupt the global economy and further escalate the war.

Meanwhile, the US leader has publicly berated Zelensky, halting briefly intelligence-sharing with Ukraine and suspending arms shipments to the country - only to then retreat in the face of concerned European allies who caution a defeat of Ukraine could disrupt the whole area.

The president often boasts about his skill to sit down and hammer out agreements, but his personal discussions with the Russian and Ukrainian leaders have not appeared to move the hostilities any nearer a resolution.

Putin may actually be using Trump's desire for a settlement – and faith in direct negotiations - as a means of manipulating him.

In July, Putin consented to a summit in the US state at the time when it appeared likely that the president would approve on congressional sanctions package backed by GOP senators. That legislation was subsequently put on hold.

Last week, as reports spread that the US administration was considering seriously sending Tomahawk cruise missiles and air defense systems to Ukraine, the president of Russia called the US president who then promoted the potential meeting in Budapest.

The following day, the president welcomed Zelensky at the White House, but departed empty-handed after a reportedly tense meeting.

Trump insisted that he was not being manipulated by Putin.

"As you are aware, I've been played all my life by the best of them, and I emerged successfully," he said.

However the president of Ukraine later commented on the sequence of events.

"Once the matter of advanced weaponry became a little further away for Ukraine – for our nation – Russia quickly became less interested in negotiations," he stated.

Thus, in a short period, the president has shifted from considering the idea of providing weapons to the Eastern European country to planning a Budapest summit with Russia's leader and privately pressuring the Ukrainian president to cede the entire Donbas region – even territory Russian forces has been unable to conquer.

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

During his election campaign previously, the candidate promised that he could end the conflict in Ukraine in a matter of hours. He has since discarded that commitment, admitting that concluding the hostilities is turning out harder than he anticipated.

It has been a uncommon admission of the constraints of his power – and the challenge of finding a peace plan when neither side desires, or can afford to, cease hostilities.