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Reports of an upcoming American-Russian leadership meeting have been overstated, apparently.

Just days after Donald Trump announced he intended to confer with Russia's leader Vladimir Putin in the Hungarian capital - "in approximately a fortnight" - the high-level talks has been put off without a new date.

A initial meeting by the both countries' top diplomats has been called off, too.

"I don't want to have a wasted meeting," Donald Trump told reporters at the White House on Tuesday afternoon. "I aim to avoid a pointless effort, so I will observe what transpires."

• Trump says he wished to avoid a 'unproductive session' after arrangement for negotiations with Putin postponed
• Letdown in Kyiv as President Zelensky departs Washington empty-handed

The frequently changing meeting is just the latest development in Trump's attempts to broker an conclusion to war in the Eastern European nation – a subject of increased attention for the American leader after he arranged a truce and hostage release agreement in Gaza.

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

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

Nonetheless, the conditions that converged to make a Gaza breakthrough achievable for Witkoff and his team may be difficult to duplicate in a conflict in Ukraine that has been ongoing for nearing several years.

Reduced Influence

Per the lead negotiator, the key to achieving a agreement was the Israeli government's decision to attack representatives of Hamas in Qatar. It was a move that angered America's Arab allies but gave Trump leverage to compel Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu into making a deal.

Trump benefited from a history of siding with Israel since his first term, including his choice to move the American embassy to Jerusalem, to alter America's position on the legality of Israeli settlements in the occupied territories and, more recently, his support for Israeli defense operations against the Islamic Republic.

The US president, actually, is more popular among the Israeli public than their prime minister – a position that provided him with unique influence over the nation's head.

Add in Trump's connections in politics and business to influential Arab nations in the area, and he had a abundant negotiating strength to force an agreement.

Regarding the conflict in Ukraine, on the other hand, Trump has significantly reduced influence. In recent months, he has vacillated between efforts to strong-arm the Russian president and then the Ukrainian leader, all with little seeming effect.

The US leader has threatened to enact new sanctions on Russian energy exports and to provide Ukraine with advanced missile systems. But he has also recognised that doing so could harm the global economy and further escalate the conflict.

Meanwhile, the US leader has publicly berated Ukraine's president, halting briefly information exchange with the country and pausing weapon deliveries to the country - then to retreat in the face of concerned European allies who warn a Ukrainian collapse could disrupt the whole area.

The president loves to tout his ability to sit down and negotiate agreements, but his personal discussions with the Russian and Ukrainian leaders haven't seemed to advance the hostilities any closer to a peaceful end.

The Russian president may actually be exploiting the US leader's wish for a settlement – and faith in in-person deal-making - as a means of influencing him.

During the summer, Putin consented to a summit in Alaska at the time when it appeared likely that Trump would approve on legislative penalties supported by Senate Republicans. That bill was subsequently put on hold.

Last week, as reports spread that the US administration was seriously contemplating sending long-range missiles and Patriot anti-air batteries to Ukraine, the president of Russia called Trump who then touted the potential meeting in Budapest.

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

Trump maintained that he was not being manipulated by the Russian president.

"You know, I've been played throughout my career by skilled operators, and I came out successfully," he said.

However the Ukrainian leader subsequently commented on the sequence of events.

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

Thus, in a matter of days, the president has shifted from entertaining the prospect of providing weapons to Ukraine to planning a Budapest summit with Putin and privately pressuring Zelensky to surrender the entire Donbas region – including land Russia has been unable to conquer.

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

On the campaign trail previously, Trump vowed that he could resolve the Ukraine war in a very short time. He has subsequently abandoned that pledge, admitting that concluding the war is turning out harder than he anticipated.

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