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

Just days after President Trump announced he intended to meet Russia's leader Vladimir Putin in Budapest - "within two weeks or so" - the summit has been suspended indefinitely.

A preliminary get-together by the two nations' top diplomats has been cancelled, as well.

"I prefer not to have a wasted meeting," President Trump told reporters at the White House on Tuesday afternoon. "I aim to avoid a waste of time, so I will observe what happens."

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

The on-again, off-again summit is another development in the president's attempts to broker an end to war in the Eastern European nation – a topic of increased attention for the US president after he orchestrated a truce and hostage release deal in Gaza.

While making remarks in the North African country last week to celebrate that ceasefire agreement, Trump addressed Steve Witkoff, with a new request.

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

Nonetheless, the circumstances that aligned to make a Gaza breakthrough possible for the negotiation team may be difficult to duplicate in a conflict in Ukraine that has been ongoing for almost four years.

Reduced Influence

Per the lead negotiator, the crucial element to unlocking a agreement was the Israeli government's decision to attack Hamas negotiators in the Gulf state. It was a action that infuriated America's Arab allies but provided Trump bargaining power to pressure Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu into making a deal.

The US president benefited from a long record of supporting Israel dating back to his first term, including his decision to move the US embassy to the contested city, to alter US policy on the lawfulness of Jewish communities in the West Bank and, more recently, his support for Israel's military campaign against Iran.

The American leader, actually, is more popular among Israelis than their prime minister – a position that provided him with special sway over the nation's head.

Combine Trump's political and economic ties to influential Arab nations in the region, and he had a abundant diplomatic muscle to force an deal.

Regarding the conflict in Ukraine, on the other hand, the president has significantly reduced influence. Over the past nine months, he has vacillated between efforts to strong-arm the Russian president and then Zelensky, all with minimal visible progress.

The US leader has warned to impose new sanctions on Russia's oil and gas sales and to provide the Ukrainian forces with new long-range weapons. But he has also acknowledged that doing so could disrupt the world's financial stability and further escalate the war.

At the same time, the president has publicly berated Zelensky, halting briefly information exchange with the country and suspending weapon deliveries to the nation - then to back off in the face of worried European partners who warn a Ukrainian collapse could destabilise the entire region.

The president loves to tout his skill to sit down and hammer out deals, but his face-to-face meetings with the Russian and Ukrainian leaders haven't seemed to advance the hostilities any nearer a peaceful end.

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

During the summer, Putin agreed to a high-level meeting in Alaska at the time when it seemed probable that Trump would sign off on legislative penalties supported by Senate Republicans. That bill was subsequently delayed.

Recently, as reports spread that the US administration was seriously contemplating shipping Tomahawk cruise missiles and air defense systems to Ukraine, the president of Russia phoned the US president who then promoted the possible meeting in Budapest.

The following day, the president welcomed Zelensky at the executive residence, but departed empty-handed after a reportedly tense meeting.

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

"As you are aware, I have been manipulated all my life by the best of them, and I emerged really well," he remarked.

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

"Once the issue of advanced weaponry became a little further away for us – for Ukraine – Russia quickly became less engaged in diplomacy," he stated.

Thus, in a matter of days, the president has shifted from entertaining the prospect of providing weapons to Ukraine to organizing a meeting in Hungary with Russia's leader and privately urging Zelensky to cede all of Donbas – including territory Russia has been failed to capture.

He has ultimately decided on advocating a ceasefire along current battle lines – something Russia has refused to accept.

During his election campaign last year, Trump vowed that he could resolve the Ukraine war in a very short time. He has subsequently abandoned that commitment, admitting that concluding the war is turning out harder than he anticipated.

It has been a rare acknowledgement of the limits of his authority – and the challenge of finding a framework for peace when both parties desires, or can afford to, cease hostilities.