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Reports of an impending American-Russian presidential meeting have been overstated, it seems.

Just days after President Trump said he planned to confer with Russian President Putin in Budapest - "in approximately a fortnight" - the summit has been put off without a new date.

A initial meeting by the both countries' leading diplomats has been called off, too.

"I don't want to have a fruitless discussion," Donald Trump told the press at the executive mansion on Tuesday afternoon. "I don't want a pointless effort, so I will observe what happens."

• Trump states he wished to avoid a 'wasted meeting' after arrangement for negotiations with Putin shelved
• Letdown in Kyiv as President Zelensky departs Washington empty-handed

The frequently changing summit is just the latest twist in the president's attempts to mediate an conclusion to war in Ukraine – a subject of increased attention for the American leader after he orchestrated a truce and hostage release deal in Gaza.

While making remarks in the North African country last week to celebrate that ceasefire agreement, the president turned to Steve Witkoff, with a new request.

"It is essential to get the Russian situation done," he declared.

However, the conditions that converged to make a Middle East success possible for Witkoff and his team may be challenging to replicate in a conflict in Ukraine that has been raging for nearing several years.

Reduced Influence

Per the lead negotiator, the crucial element to unlocking a deal was the Israeli government's decision to strike representatives of Hamas in Qatar. It was a move that infuriated US partners in the Arab world but gave Trump leverage to compel Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu into reaching an agreement.

Trump benefited from a history of supporting Israel dating back to his first term, including his decision to move the American embassy to the contested city, to change America's position on the lawfulness of Jewish communities in the occupied territories and, more recently, his backing for Israel's military campaign against the Islamic Republic.

The US president, in fact, is more popular among Israelis than Netanyahu – a position that gave him unique influence over the nation's head.

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

In the Ukraine war, by contrast, Trump has significantly reduced leverage. In recent months, he has vacillated between efforts to strong-arm Putin and then Zelensky, all with minimal visible progress.

The US leader has threatened to impose 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 further escalate the conflict.

Meanwhile, the US leader has criticized openly Zelensky, temporarily cutting off intelligence-sharing with the country and suspending arms shipments to the nation - only to then back off in the face of worried European partners who warn a defeat of Ukraine could disrupt the whole area.

Trump often boasts about his ability to sit down and negotiate agreements, but his personal discussions with the Russian and Ukrainian leaders have not appeared to advance the hostilities any nearer a resolution.

The Russian president may actually be exploiting Trump's desire for a deal – and belief in direct negotiations - as a means of manipulating him.

During the summer, Russia's leader consented to a summit in the US state just as it seemed probable that Trump would approve on congressional sanctions package supported by GOP senators. That bill was afterwards delayed.

Last week, as reports spread that the US administration was considering seriously sending long-range missiles and air defense systems to Kyiv, the president of Russia called the US president who then promoted the possible summit in Budapest.

The following day, the president welcomed Ukraine's leader at the White House, but departed without agreements after a reportedly strained discussion.

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

"You know, I've been played all my life by the best of them, and I emerged successfully," he remarked.

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

"As soon as the matter of advanced weaponry became a less accessible for Ukraine – for our nation – the Russian side almost automatically became less interested in diplomacy," he stated.

Thus, in a short period, the president has shifted from considering the idea of sending missiles to Ukraine to organizing a Budapest summit with Russia's leader and confidentially urging Zelensky to surrender all of Donbas – even land Russian forces has been unable to conquer.

He has finally settled on calling for a truce along current battle lines – something Russia has refused to accept.

On the campaign trail last year, Trump promised that he could resolve the Ukraine war in a matter of hours. He has subsequently discarded that commitment, admitting that ending the war is turning out harder than he expected.

It has been a uncommon admission of the constraints of his authority – and the challenge of finding a framework for peace when neither side desires, or can afford to, give up the fight.