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

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

A initial get-together by the both countries' top diplomats has been cancelled, as well.

"I don't want to have a fruitless discussion," President Trump told the press at the executive mansion on a recent weekday. "I don't want a waste of time, so I'll see what happens."

• Donald Trump says he did not want a 'unproductive session' after arrangement for Putin talks postponed
• Disappointment in Ukraine's capital as President Zelensky departs White House without results

The frequently changing summit is just the latest twist in Trump's efforts to broker an end to war in the Eastern European nation – a topic of increased attention for the US president after he orchestrated a ceasefire and prisoner exchange deal in Gaza.

While making remarks in the North African country recently to celebrate that truce deal, the president addressed Steve Witkoff, with a fresh directive.

"It is essential to get Russia resolved," he declared.

Nonetheless, the conditions that converged to make a Gaza breakthrough achievable for the negotiation team may be challenging to replicate in a Ukraine war that has been ongoing for almost several years.

Less Leverage

According to the lead negotiator, the crucial element to unlocking a deal was Israel's decision to strike Hamas negotiators in Qatar. It was a action that infuriated America's Arab allies but gave the president leverage to compel Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu into making a deal.

The US president gained from a long record of siding with the Israeli state dating back to his initial presidency, including his decision to relocate the American embassy to Jerusalem, to change America's position on the lawfulness of Jewish communities in the occupied territories and, more recently, his support for Israeli defense operations against the Islamic Republic.

The US president, actually, is better regarded among Israelis than Netanyahu – a situation 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 abundant diplomatic muscle to force an deal.

In the Ukraine war, on the other hand, the president has significantly reduced leverage. In recent months, he has swung between attempts to pressure the Russian president and then Zelensky, all with minimal visible progress.

The US leader has threatened to impose additional penalties on Russian energy exports and to provide the Ukrainian forces with advanced missile systems. But he has also recognised that such actions could disrupt the world's financial stability and intensify the conflict.

At the same time, the US leader has criticized openly Zelensky, halting briefly information exchange with Ukraine and pausing weapon deliveries to the nation - only to then back off in the wake of concerned European allies who warn a Ukrainian collapse could disrupt the whole area.

The president loves to tout his ability to meet and hammer out deals, but his face-to-face meetings with both Putin and Zelensky 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 in-person deal-making - as a method of influencing him.

In July, Putin consented to a high-level meeting in Alaska just as it seemed probable that the president would approve on legislative penalties supported by GOP senators. That legislation was afterwards delayed.

Recently, as news emerged that the White House was considering seriously sending long-range missiles and air defense systems to Ukraine, the president of Russia phoned Trump who then promoted the potential summit in Budapest.

The next day, Trump welcomed Ukraine's leader at the executive residence, but left without agreements after a reportedly strained discussion.

Trump maintained that he was not being played by Putin.

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

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

"As soon as the matter of advanced weaponry became a less accessible for us – for Ukraine – Russia quickly became less engaged in negotiations," he stated.

Thus, in a matter of days, Trump has shifted from entertaining the prospect of providing weapons to the Eastern European country to organizing a meeting in Hungary with Russia's leader and privately urging the Ukrainian president to cede the entire Donbas region – including territory Russia has been unable to conquer.

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

On the campaign trail previously, the candidate vowed that he could end the Ukraine war in a matter of hours. He has since abandoned that pledge, admitting that ending the hostilities is turning out more difficult than he expected.

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