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Accounts of an upcoming American-Russian leadership summit have been greatly exaggerated, it seems.

Only a few days after President Trump said he planned to meet Russia's leader Putin in the Hungarian capital - "in approximately a fortnight" - the high-level talks has been put off without a new date.

A preliminary get-together by the two nations' leading diplomats has been called off, as well.

"I don't want to have a fruitless discussion," Donald 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 happens."

• Trump says he wished to avoid a 'unproductive session' after arrangement for Putin talks shelved
• Disappointment in Ukraine's capital as Zelensky departs Washington without results

The frequently changing meeting is another development in the president's attempts to broker an end to war in Ukraine – a subject of renewed focus for the American leader after he arranged a truce and hostage release deal in the Palestinian territory.

During a speech in the North African country recently to celebrate that ceasefire agreement, the president turned to his lead diplomatic negotiator, with a new request.

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

However, the conditions that converged to make a Gaza breakthrough achievable for the negotiation team may be difficult 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 the Israeli government's move to attack Hamas negotiators in Qatar. It was a move that angered US partners in the Arab world but gave Trump bargaining power to compel Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu into reaching an agreement.

The US president benefited from a long record of siding with Israel since his initial presidency, including his choice to relocate the American embassy to the contested city, to change US policy on the legality of Jewish communities in the West Bank and, in recent times, his support for Israel's military campaign against Iran.

The US president, actually, is better regarded among the Israeli public than Netanyahu – a position that gave him unique influence over the Israeli leader.

Add in Trump's connections in politics and business to influential Arab nations in the region, and he had a wealth of diplomatic muscle to force an deal.

Regarding the conflict in Ukraine, by contrast, the president has significantly reduced influence. In recent months, he has swung between efforts to strong-arm the Russian president and then Zelensky, all with minimal visible progress.

Trump has warned to impose new sanctions on Russia's oil and gas sales and to provide the Ukrainian forces with advanced missile systems. But he has also recognised that doing so could disrupt the world's financial stability and intensify the conflict.

Meanwhile, the president has criticized openly Zelensky, temporarily cutting off intelligence-sharing with Ukraine and pausing arms shipments to the nation - then to back off in the wake of concerned European allies who warn a defeat of Ukraine could destabilise the entire region.

Trump often boasts about his skill to meet and hammer out agreements, but his face-to-face meetings with the Russian and Ukrainian leaders have not appeared to advance the hostilities any nearer a resolution.

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

In July, Putin agreed to a summit in Alaska at the time when it appeared likely that Trump would approve on congressional sanctions package backed by Senate Republicans. That legislation was subsequently delayed.

Last week, as news emerged that the US administration was seriously contemplating 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 White House, but left empty-handed after a allegedly 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 came out really well," he remarked.

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

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

So, in a short period, the president has bounced from considering the idea of providing weapons to Ukraine to planning a meeting in Hungary with Russia's leader and confidentially pressuring Zelensky to surrender all of Donbas – including territory Russian forces has been failed to capture.

He has finally settled on advocating a truce along present frontlines – something the Russian government has rejected.

On the campaign trail previously, the candidate promised that he could resolve the Ukraine war in a very short time. He has subsequently abandoned that pledge, saying that concluding the hostilities is proving harder than he expected.

It has been a rare acknowledgement of the limits of his power – and the challenge of establishing a framework for peace when neither side wants, or is able to, give up the fight.