Why Donald Trump Secured a Breakthrough in Gaza But Faces Challenges Regarding Vladimir Putin Concerning Ukraine

Accounts of an upcoming American-Russian presidential summit have been overstated, apparently.

Just days after President Trump announced he intended to meet Russian President Putin in Budapest - "in approximately a fortnight" - the summit has been suspended indefinitely.

A preliminary meeting by the two nations' leading diplomats has been cancelled, as well.

"I prefer not to have a wasted meeting," President Trump told the press at the executive mansion on Tuesday afternoon. "I don't want a pointless effort, so I'll see what happens."

• Donald Trump says he did not want a 'wasted meeting' after plan for negotiations with Putin postponed
• Disappointment in Kyiv as Zelensky leaves Washington without results

The on-again, off-again meeting is another twist in Trump's efforts to broker an end to war in the Eastern European nation – a subject of increased attention for the American leader after he orchestrated a truce and prisoner exchange deal in Gaza.

While making remarks in the North African country recently to commemorate that ceasefire agreement, the president turned to his lead diplomatic negotiator, with a fresh directive.

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

However, the conditions that aligned to make a Middle East success possible for Witkoff and his team may be difficult to duplicate in a Ukraine war that has been raging for almost four years.

Less Leverage

According to the lead negotiator, the key to achieving a deal was the Israeli government's move to strike representatives of Hamas in the Gulf state. It was a action that infuriated America's Arab allies but provided Trump bargaining power to pressure Israel's leader Netanyahu into reaching an agreement.

The US president benefited from a long record of supporting the Israeli state dating back to his initial presidency, encompassing his choice to move the US embassy to Jerusalem, to change US policy on the legality of Jewish communities in the occupied territories and, more recently, his support for Israel's military campaign against the Islamic Republic.

The US president, actually, is more popular among Israelis than Netanyahu – a situation that gave him special sway over the nation's head.

Add in Trump's connections in politics and business to key Arab players in the area, 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 swung between attempts to pressure the Russian president and then the Ukrainian leader, all with minimal visible progress.

Trump has threatened to impose new sanctions on Russia's oil and gas sales and to provide Ukraine with advanced missile systems. But he has also recognised that such actions could disrupt the global economy and intensify the war.

At the same time, the US leader has criticized openly Zelensky, temporarily cutting off information exchange with the country and pausing weapon deliveries to the country - only to then back off in the face of concerned European allies who caution a defeat of Ukraine could disrupt the entire region.

The president loves to tout his ability to sit down and negotiate agreements, but his personal discussions with both Putin and Zelensky haven't seemed to advance the hostilities any closer to a resolution.

Putin may in fact be using Trump's desire for a settlement – and belief in direct negotiations - as a means of manipulating him.

In July, Russia's leader agreed to a summit in Alaska at the time when it appeared likely that Trump would approve on congressional sanctions package supported by Senate Republicans. That legislation was subsequently put on hold.

Recently, as reports spread that the US administration was considering seriously sending long-range missiles and air defense systems to Ukraine, the Russian leader called Trump who then promoted the potential meeting in Budapest.

The next day, Trump welcomed Ukraine's leader at the White House, but left empty-handed after a reportedly strained discussion.

The US leader 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 remarked.

However the president of Ukraine later commented on the sequence of events.

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

Thus, in a short period, Trump has bounced from entertaining the prospect of providing weapons to the Eastern European country to organizing a meeting in Hungary with Putin and privately pressuring Zelensky to cede all of Donbas – even territory Russia has been failed to capture.

He has ultimately decided on calling for a truce along present frontlines – a proposal Russia has rejected.

On the campaign trail last year, Trump vowed that he could end the Ukraine war in a matter of hours. He has subsequently discarded that commitment, saying that ending the war is proving more difficult than he anticipated.

It has been a uncommon admission of the limits of his authority – and the difficulty of establishing a peace plan when both parties wants, or can afford to, cease hostilities.