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Reports of an upcoming American-Russian presidential summit have been greatly exaggerated, apparently.

Just days after Donald Trump said he intended to confer with Russia's leader Putin in Budapest - "within two weeks or so" - the summit has been suspended indefinitely.

A initial meeting by the both countries' leading diplomats has been cancelled, as well.

"I prefer not to have a fruitless discussion," Donald Trump told reporters at the White House on Tuesday afternoon. "I don't want a pointless effort, so I'll see what transpires."

• Trump says he did not want a 'unproductive session' after arrangement for Putin talks postponed
• Disappointment in Ukraine's capital as President Zelensky leaves Washington empty-handed

The frequently changing meeting is another twist in the president's efforts to broker an conclusion 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.

During a speech in the North African country recently to celebrate that ceasefire agreement, Trump turned to Steve Witkoff, with a new request.

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

Nonetheless, the conditions that aligned to make a Gaza breakthrough possible for the negotiation team may be challenging to duplicate in a Ukraine war that has been ongoing for nearing four years.

Reduced Influence

Per Witkoff, the key to achieving a agreement was Israel's decision to strike representatives of Hamas in Qatar. It was a action that angered America's Arab allies but gave the president bargaining power to pressure Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu into reaching an agreement.

The US president benefited from a long record of supporting the Israeli state dating back to his first term, including his choice to move the US embassy to Jerusalem, to alter America's position on the legality of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and, more recently, his backing for Israeli defense operations against the Islamic Republic.

The US president, in fact, is better regarded among Israelis than their prime minister – a situation that provided him with unique influence over the nation's head.

Add in the president's connections in politics and business to influential Arab nations in the region, and he had a wealth of negotiating strength to force an agreement.

In the Ukraine war, by contrast, the president has significantly reduced leverage. In recent months, he has swung between efforts to strong-arm the Russian president and then Zelensky, all with little seeming effect.

Trump has threatened to impose additional penalties on Russian energy exports and to supply Ukraine with new long-range weapons. But he has also acknowledged that doing so could disrupt the world's financial stability and further escalate the conflict.

At the same time, the president has criticized openly Ukraine's president, temporarily cutting off information exchange with the country and suspending weapon deliveries to the nation - only to then back off in the wake of concerned European allies who caution a defeat of Ukraine could disrupt the whole area.

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

The Russian president may actually be using Trump's desire for a settlement – and faith in direct negotiations - as a method of influencing him.

In July, Russia's leader agreed to a high-level meeting in the US state at the time when it seemed probable that the president would sign off on congressional sanctions package backed by GOP senators. That legislation was afterwards delayed.

Last week, as reports spread that the US administration was considering seriously sending Tomahawk cruise missiles and air defense systems to Kyiv, the president of Russia called the US president who then promoted the potential meeting in Budapest.

The next day, Trump welcomed Zelensky at the White House, but departed without agreements after a allegedly tense meeting.

Trump maintained that he was not being manipulated by Putin.

"You know, I have been manipulated all my life by the best of them, and I came out really well," he remarked.

But the president of Ukraine later made note of the sequence of events.

"As soon as the matter of advanced weaponry became a little further away for us – for our nation – the Russian side almost automatically became less interested in negotiations," he said.

So, in a matter of days, the president has bounced from considering the idea of providing weapons to the Eastern European country to organizing a meeting in Hungary with Russia's leader and privately pressuring Zelensky to cede all of Donbas – even land Russia has been unable to conquer.

He has finally settled on calling for a ceasefire along present frontlines – a proposal the Russian government has refused to accept.

During his election campaign previously, the candidate vowed that he could end the Ukraine war in a matter of hours. He has subsequently abandoned that pledge, saying 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 establishing a framework for peace when both parties desires, or can afford to, give up the fight.