biden-to-meet-zelenskyy-in-g7-summit-on-thursday

The US President Joe Biden arrived in Italy Wednesday night to attend the G7 Summit, which apart from the leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom is also being attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a special invitee.

 

On Thursday, Biden plans to hold a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during which the two leaders will sign a bilateral security agreement for Ukraine “making clear our (US) support will last long into the future”, his National Security Advisor (NSA) Jake Sullivan told reporters aboard Air Force One on their way to Italy.

 

The war in Ukraine and the Middle East are expected to dominate the G-7 Summit in addition to some of the new critical challenges like Artificial Intelligence, climate change and supply chain.

 

Sullivan said Biden and Zelenskyy will sit down to discuss America’s strong support for Ukraine now and in the future.

 

After the meeting, the leaders will sign a bilateral security agreement mentioning that the US support for Ukraine will last long and pledge continued cooperation, particularly in the areas of defence and security, he added.

 

“Our goal here is straightforward. We want to demonstrate that the US supports the people of Ukraine, that we stand with them, and that we’ll continue to help address their security needs not just tomorrow but out into the future,” the NSA said.

 

The agreement outlines a clear vision of work with Ukraine to continue strengthening Ukraine’s credible defence and deterrence capability. Any lasting peace in Ukraine has to be underwritten by Ukraine’s own ability to defend itself and deter future aggression, he said “And by signing this, we'll also be sending Russia a signal of our resolve. If Vladimir Putin thinks that he can outlast the coalition supporting Ukraine, he's wrong. He just cannot wait us out, and this agreement will show our resolve and continued commitment,” Sullivan said.

 

A day earlier, White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby told reporters that this year's summit would show that G7 is more unified than ever to tackle global challenges, and to renew their commitment to partners around the world that they will help them invest in bright futures for their people.

 

“We will build on the progress we made last year on our shared approach to the Indo-Pacific as well, including by advancing an Indo-Pacific region that is free, open, secure, prosperous, resilient, and connected,” he said.

 

“We will address the PRC’s support for the Russian defence industrial base. And we will confront China's non-market policies that are leading to harmful global spillovers, working with partners in and beyond the G7 to promote economic resilience and security,” Kirby said.

 

Biden will again host a side event that will highlight its positive value proposition to countries around the world via the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment, or PGI, he said.

 

“We will continue to offer a path to help countries overcome unsustainable debt burdens, to boost the World Bank's lending firepower, to mobilize additional capital for high-standard infrastructure investments, and to make new commitments on food and health security,” he added.

 

G7 leaders will be joined by His Holiness, Pope Francis, for a session on artificial intelligence, among other topics. “This will be an important moment for our countries to come together and develop our shared approach to harnessing the benefits of AI while at the same time managing the risks to our national security and impacts that it may have to our workforces and inequality,” Kirby said.

 

“The bottom line here is that President Biden believes we must continue to imagine, to invent and to inspire. We are committed to investing in that vision with our closest allies. We are very confident that if we do, the United States will continue to lead on the world stage for generations to come,” said the White House official.