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

Just days after President Trump announced he planned to confer with Russia's leader Putin in Budapest - "in approximately a fortnight" - the summit has been suspended indefinitely.

A initial meeting by the two nations' top diplomats has been cancelled, as well.

"I don't want to have a wasted meeting," Donald Trump informed the press at the White House on Tuesday afternoon. "I aim to avoid a pointless effort, so I'll see what transpires."

• Trump says he wished to avoid a 'unproductive session' after plan for Putin talks postponed
• Disappointment in Ukraine's capital as Zelensky departs White House without results

The frequently changing meeting is just the latest twist in Trump's attempts to broker an conclusion to hostilities in the Eastern European nation – a subject of increased attention for the American leader after he orchestrated a ceasefire and prisoner exchange deal in the Palestinian territory.

During a speech in the North African country recently to commemorate that ceasefire agreement, Trump addressed his lead diplomatic negotiator, with a new request.

"We have to get Russia done," he said.

However, the circumstances that aligned to make a Gaza breakthrough possible for Witkoff and his team may be difficult to duplicate in a Ukraine war that has been raging for almost four years.

Reduced Influence

According to Witkoff, the key to unlocking a deal was Israel's decision to strike representatives of Hamas in Qatar. It was a action that angered America's Arab allies but provided the president leverage to compel Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu into reaching an agreement.

The US president benefited from a history of supporting Israel dating back to his first term, encompassing his decision to relocate the American embassy to the contested city, to change US policy on the legality of Israeli settlements in the occupied territories and, in recent times, his backing for Israel's military campaign against the Islamic Republic.

The US president, in fact, is more popular among Israelis than Netanyahu – a situation that gave him special sway over the Israeli leader.

Add in the president's political and economic ties to influential Arab nations in the area, and he had a abundant diplomatic muscle to secure an agreement.

In the Ukraine war, by contrast, Trump has much less leverage. In recent months, he has vacillated between efforts to strong-arm Putin and then the Ukrainian leader, all with little seeming effect.

Trump has warned to impose additional penalties on Russian energy exports and to supply the Ukrainian forces with advanced missile systems. But he has also acknowledged that doing so could harm the global economy and intensify the war.

Meanwhile, the president has criticized openly Ukraine's president, halting briefly information exchange with the country and suspending weapon deliveries to the country - only to then retreat in the wake of concerned European allies who caution a Ukrainian collapse could disrupt the entire region.

Trump often boasts about his skill to sit down and hammer out agreements, but his face-to-face meetings with the Russian and Ukrainian leaders haven't seemed to advance the war any closer to a peaceful end.

Putin may in fact be using the US leader's wish for a settlement – and belief in direct negotiations - as a method of influencing him.

In July, Putin agreed to a summit in the US state just as it appeared likely that Trump would approve on congressional sanctions package backed by Senate Republicans. That bill was afterwards put on hold.

Recently, as reports spread that the White House was seriously contemplating shipping long-range missiles and Patriot anti-air batteries to Ukraine, the Russian leader called the US president who then promoted the possible meeting in Hungary.

The next day, the president welcomed Ukraine's leader at the White House, but left empty-handed after a reportedly strained discussion.

Trump maintained that he was not being played by the Russian president.

"As you are aware, I've been played all my life by skilled operators, and I came out successfully," he said.

But the Ukrainian leader later made note of the sequence of events.

"Once the matter of long-range mobility became a less accessible for Ukraine – for Ukraine – the Russian side quickly became less interested in negotiations," he said.

Thus, in a short period, the president has bounced from considering the idea of sending missiles to Ukraine to planning a meeting in Hungary with Russia's leader and confidentially urging Zelensky to surrender the entire Donbas region – including territory Russian forces has been unable to conquer.

He has finally settled on calling for a ceasefire along present frontlines – something the Russian government has rejected.

During his election campaign previously, the candidate promised that he could end the Ukraine war in a very short time. He has since discarded that pledge, saying that ending the hostilities is proving harder than he expected.

It has been a rare acknowledgement of the limits of his authority – and the challenge of finding a framework for peace when neither side wants, or can afford to, cease hostilities.