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Reports of an impending US-Russia leadership summit have been overstated, apparently.

Only a few days after Donald Trump said he planned to meet Russia's leader Putin in Budapest - "in approximately a fortnight" - the summit has been put off without a new date.

A initial get-together by the two nations' top diplomats has been cancelled, too.

"I don't want to have a wasted meeting," Donald Trump informed reporters at the White House on a recent weekday. "I aim to avoid a pointless effort, so I will observe what happens."

• Donald Trump says he did not want a 'unproductive session' after plan for negotiations with Putin shelved
• Letdown in Kyiv as President Zelensky departs White House empty-handed

The on-again, off-again summit is another development in the president's attempts to mediate an end to hostilities in the Eastern European nation – a topic of renewed focus for the American leader after he orchestrated a ceasefire and hostage release agreement in the Palestinian territory.

During a speech in Egypt last week to celebrate that ceasefire agreement, Trump addressed his lead diplomatic negotiator, with a fresh directive.

"It is essential to get the Russian situation resolved," he said.

Nonetheless, 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 raging for almost several years.

Less Leverage

Per Witkoff, the key to unlocking a deal was Israel's decision to attack Hamas negotiators in Qatar. It was a move that infuriated US partners in the Arab world but provided the president leverage to pressure Israel's leader Benjamin Netanyahu into making a deal.

The US president benefited from a history of siding with Israel dating back to his first term, encompassing his decision to move the US embassy to Jerusalem, to alter America's position on the legality of Jewish communities in the West Bank and, in recent times, his support for Israeli defense operations against Iran.

The American leader, actually, is better regarded among Israelis than Netanyahu – a position that provided him with unique influence over the Israeli leader.

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

In the Ukraine war, by contrast, Trump has much less influence. In recent months, he has vacillated between attempts to pressure Putin and then the Ukrainian leader, all with minimal visible progress.

Trump has warned to enact new sanctions on Russian energy exports and to supply Ukraine with new long-range weapons. 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 arms shipments to the country - then to back off in the face of concerned European allies who warn a defeat of Ukraine could destabilise the entire region.

The president often boasts about his ability to meet and negotiate agreements, but his personal discussions with the Russian and Ukrainian leaders have not appeared to move the hostilities any closer to a resolution.

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

In July, Russia's leader consented to a high-level meeting in Alaska just as it appeared likely that Trump would approve on legislative penalties supported by Senate Republicans. That legislation was afterwards put on hold.

Recently, as news emerged that the US administration was considering seriously shipping Tomahawk cruise missiles and air defense systems to Kyiv, the Russian leader phoned the US president who then touted the possible summit in Budapest.

The following day, the president hosted Zelensky at the White House, but left empty-handed after a reportedly strained discussion.

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

"As you are aware, I have been manipulated throughout my career by the best of them, and I emerged successfully," he remarked.

But the president of Ukraine subsequently commented on the timeline of developments.

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

Thus, in a matter of days, Trump has shifted from considering the idea of sending missiles to the Eastern European country to organizing a Budapest summit with Putin and confidentially urging Zelensky to cede all of Donbas – including land Russia has been unable to conquer.

He has ultimately settled on calling for a ceasefire along current battle lines – a proposal the Russian government has rejected.

On the campaign trail previously, Trump vowed that he could end the conflict in Ukraine in a matter of hours. He has subsequently discarded that pledge, admitting that concluding the hostilities is turning out harder than he anticipated.

It has been a uncommon admission of the limits of his power – and the challenge of establishing a framework for peace when neither side desires, or is able to, cease hostilities.