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Reports of an impending US-Russia presidential summit have been greatly exaggerated, apparently.

Just days after President Trump said he planned to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Budapest - "within two weeks or so" - the high-level talks has been put off without a new date.

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

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

• Donald Trump states he wished to avoid a 'unproductive session' after plan for negotiations with Putin shelved
• Letdown in Ukraine's capital as President Zelensky leaves Washington without results

The frequently changing summit is another development in the president's efforts to mediate an end to hostilities in the Eastern European nation – a subject of renewed focus for the American leader after he orchestrated a truce and hostage release agreement in the Palestinian territory.

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

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

Nonetheless, the conditions that converged to make a Middle East success possible for Witkoff and his team may be difficult to duplicate in a conflict in Ukraine that has been ongoing for almost several years.

Reduced Influence

Per the lead negotiator, the key to unlocking a agreement was Israel's decision to strike 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 Netanyahu into reaching an agreement.

The US president benefited from a long record of siding with Israel dating back to his initial presidency, including his decision to move the American embassy to Jerusalem, to change US policy on the lawfulness of Jewish communities in the West Bank and, in recent times, his backing for Israeli defense operations against the Islamic Republic.

The American leader, in fact, is more popular among Israelis than Netanyahu – a situation that provided him with special sway over the Israeli leader.

Add in Trump's political and economic ties to key Arab players in the area, and he had a abundant diplomatic muscle to secure an deal.

In the Ukraine war, by contrast, Trump has much less leverage. Over the past nine months, he has swung between efforts to strong-arm the Russian president and then the Ukrainian leader, all with minimal visible progress.

The US leader has threatened to impose additional penalties on Russia's oil and gas sales and to provide the Ukrainian forces with advanced missile systems. But he has also acknowledged that such actions could harm the global economy and intensify the conflict.

Meanwhile, the US leader has criticized openly Ukraine's president, halting briefly intelligence-sharing with Ukraine and pausing arms shipments to the nation - only to then retreat in the face of worried European partners who warn a Ukrainian collapse could destabilise the entire region.

The president often boasts about his skill to sit down and negotiate deals, but his face-to-face meetings with both Putin and Zelensky haven't seemed to advance the hostilities any nearer a resolution.

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

In July, Putin consented to a high-level meeting in Alaska just as it seemed probable that the president would sign off on congressional sanctions package backed by GOP senators. That legislation was subsequently delayed.

Last week, as reports spread that the White House was considering seriously sending Tomahawk cruise missiles and Patriot anti-air batteries to Ukraine, the president of Russia called the US president who then promoted the possible summit in Hungary.

The next day, Trump hosted Ukraine's leader at the White House, but departed without agreements after a allegedly strained discussion.

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

"As you are aware, I've been played throughout my career by skilled operators, and I came out really well," he said.

However the president of Ukraine subsequently made note of the timeline of developments.

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

Thus, in a short period, Trump has shifted from entertaining the prospect of sending missiles to Ukraine to planning a Budapest summit with Russia's leader and privately urging Zelensky to surrender the entire Donbas region – even land Russia has been failed to capture.

He has finally settled on advocating a truce along present frontlines – a proposal the Russian government has refused to accept.

During his election campaign previously, the candidate promised that he could resolve the conflict in Ukraine in a matter of hours. He has subsequently abandoned that commitment, admitting that concluding the war is turning out more difficult than he anticipated.

It has been a uncommon admission of the limits of his authority – and the challenge of finding a peace plan when neither side desires, or is able to, give up the fight.