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Accounts of an upcoming US-Russia leadership summit have been greatly exaggerated, it seems.

Only a few days after President Trump announced he planned to confer with Russian President Putin in the Hungarian capital - "in approximately a fortnight" - the high-level talks has been put off without a new date.

A preliminary meeting by the both countries' leading diplomats has been cancelled, too.

"I prefer not to have a wasted meeting," Donald Trump told the press at the White House on a recent weekday. "I aim to avoid a waste of time, so I will observe what happens."

• Trump says he did not want a 'wasted meeting' after arrangement for Putin talks postponed
• Disappointment in Ukraine's capital as Zelensky departs Washington empty-handed

The frequently changing meeting is another twist in the president's attempts to broker an end to hostilities in Ukraine – a topic of renewed focus for the US president after he orchestrated a ceasefire and hostage release deal in Gaza.

During a speech in the North African country recently to commemorate that truce deal, the president turned to Steve Witkoff, with a fresh directive.

"We have to get Russia done," he declared.

However, the circumstances that converged to make a Gaza breakthrough possible for Witkoff and his team may be difficult to replicate in a conflict in Ukraine that has been ongoing for nearing several years.

Less Leverage

Per Witkoff, the crucial element to unlocking a deal was the Israeli government's decision to attack representatives of Hamas in the Gulf state. It was a action that infuriated US partners in the Arab world but provided the president bargaining power to pressure Israel's leader Benjamin Netanyahu into reaching an agreement.

The US president benefited from a long record of siding with the Israeli state dating back to his initial presidency, encompassing his decision to relocate the American embassy to Jerusalem, to change America's position on the legality of Israeli settlements in the occupied territories and, more recently, his support for Israeli defense operations against Iran.

The American leader, actually, is better regarded among Israelis 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 abundant negotiating strength to secure an deal.

In the Ukraine war, on the other hand, the president has much less leverage. In recent months, he has vacillated between attempts to strong-arm the Russian president and then Zelensky, all with little seeming effect.

The US leader has warned to impose additional penalties on Russian energy exports and to provide Ukraine with advanced missile systems. But he has also acknowledged that such actions could harm the world's financial stability and further escalate the war.

Meanwhile, the US leader has publicly berated Zelensky, temporarily cutting off information exchange with the country and pausing weapon deliveries to the nation - only to then retreat in the wake of concerned European allies who caution a Ukrainian collapse could disrupt the whole area.

The president often boasts about his skill to meet and negotiate agreements, but his personal discussions with both Putin and Zelensky have not appeared to advance the war any nearer a peaceful end.

Putin may actually be exploiting the US leader's wish for a settlement – and belief in in-person deal-making - as a method of influencing him.

In July, Russia's leader consented to a summit in the US state at the time when it appeared likely that Trump would approve on congressional sanctions package supported by GOP senators. That legislation was afterwards delayed.

Recently, as reports spread that the US administration was seriously contemplating shipping Tomahawk cruise missiles and Patriot anti-air batteries to Ukraine, the president of Russia phoned Trump who then touted the possible summit in Hungary.

The following day, Trump welcomed Ukraine's leader at the executive residence, but left empty-handed after a allegedly tense meeting.

The US leader insisted that he was not being played by the Russian president.

"You know, I've been played all my life by skilled operators, and I came out really well," he said.

However 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 Ukraine – Russia quickly became less engaged in diplomacy," he said.

Thus, in a matter of days, Trump has bounced from considering the idea of sending missiles to Ukraine to planning a meeting in Hungary with Putin and privately urging the Ukrainian president to surrender all of Donbas – even land Russia has been failed to capture.

He has ultimately decided on calling for a ceasefire along current battle lines – a proposal Russia has rejected.

On the campaign trail last year, Trump promised that he could resolve the Ukraine war in a very short time. He has subsequently abandoned that pledge, admitting that ending the hostilities is turning out more difficult than he anticipated.

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