Anthony Zurcher
Reporting from the Nato summit

If the bar for Joe Biden at this press conference is to look presidential - to speak in complete sentences and stay on message - then it is one he has cleared so far.

While he is still a bit hoarse, and his voice is a soft, he is parrying questions from reporters that, while pointed, have been respectful. He’s smiling and laughing and seems relatively at ease, despite the stakes.

That’s a low bar, however. And given the damage his campaign has taken the past two weeks, just meeting it may not be enough.

A member of the foreign press asks Biden about the potential outcome of the 2024 US election.

Do you think that Europe will be left on its own if Donald Trump wins the election, and what's your advice to European leaders to prepare for possible US disengagement? the reporter asks.

Biden says he hears from foreign leaders that "you gotta win" and that Trump winning would "be a disaster".

"Foreign policy's never been his strong point, and he seems to have an affinity for people who are authoritarian," Biden says of Trump.

"I think I'm the best qualified person to do the job, to make sure that Ukraine does not fall, that Ukraine succeeds, that the European alliance stays strong," he says.

Biden was asked earlier about whether he has permitted Ukraine to use US-made weapons to launch attacks on Russian territory.

"We allowed Zelensky to use American weapons in the near term... into Russia," says Biden.

But he adds that tactical decisions are necessary regarding which weapons to use against which targets.

Referring to Zelensky, he said: "If he had the capacity to strike Moscow, to strike the Kremlin, would that make sense? It wouldn't."

He says that the US has provided more long-range and defensive weapons to Ukraine, and the question for Zelensky is "what's the best use of the weaponry he has, the weaponry we're getting to him".

"I'm following the advice of my commander in chief, my chiefs of staff of the military as well as our secretary of defense and our intelligence people," he said.

His remark was a small slip up, which he appeared to catch and correct immediately. As president, he is the commander in chief.

"And were making a day to day decision on how far they should go in," he says, returning to the question of US weapons striking Russian territory.

There's no indication I'm not getting the job done, Biden says.

The president says the way he reassures himself is by asking himself "am I getting the job done?"

Biden answers the question himself by saying there's "no indication" he can't get the job done, and he notes the amount of legislation that he has been able to pass in his first term as proof of his success.

Kayla Epstein
Senior US reporter

Image source, Reuters

Biden has been sparring a bit with reporters as he engages in a press conference meant to prove he possesses the vitality to retain the presidency.

Several reporters have asked about Democratic pressure for him to step aside, and he's pointedly pushed back on the press over and over tonight.

Biden says that he wants to move past his debate performance, and he is the most fired up that we've seen in a while.

He acknowledged he was traveling extensively before his disastrous debate performance.

"My schedule has been full," he says, and speculates Trump has been on a "golf cart" since the debate.

He says he has to "pace myself a little more," and promises he's not going to travel through "15 time zones" before the next showdown with Trump.

"I'm catching hell from my wife," he adds as a bit of a joke.

Biden dismisses reports about him ending his evenings earlier to defend against public gaffes and negative perceptions of his mental fitness.

"That's not true," he says, referring to the reports.

"Instead of my every day starting at seven and ending at midnight, it would be smart for me to pace myself a bit better," Biden acknowledges.

The president says that he made a "stupid mistake" at the debate, but he says he hasn't taken on less work since.

He insists his schedule has remained packed.

Image source, Reuters

Biden is asked about his vice-president, and whether Kamala Harris would be ready to step in as president if necessary.

Asked to explain what makes her so prepared, Biden responds by touting her record on abortion and how "she's handled the issue of women's freedom".

Secondly, he points to "her ability to handle almost any issue on the board".

He notes that she was a prosecutor and senator before joining his campaign and is "a first-rate person".

"I wouldn't have picked her unless I thought she was qualified to be president," he adds.

Biden turns an unfriendly question about calls for him to bow out of the race into an opportunity to tout his economic wins.

He says that he has been a pro-union president, fought to lower inflation in the US, and worked to bolster the computer chip industry.

Find me a mainstream economist who says we haven’t done well, he tells reporters.

Anthony Zurcher
Reporting from the Nato summit

One question into his press conference, and Joe Biden already committed another stumble, referring to Kamala Harris as “Trump”.

It comes a few hours after he accidentally introduced Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as Vladimir Putin.

The first instance, he quickly corrected himself. This time, he didn’t catch it, even after a few reporters in the crowd let out an audible "oh".

It’s the kind of mistake that forms a drumbeat of mistakes that risks drowning out any message he tries to deliver tonight.

A question from CBS asks Biden about why he's staying in the race when it's not his enemies calling for him to leave - it's his friends, fellow Democrats and people he's worked with over his career.

"I'm not in this for my legacy, I'm in this to complete the job I started," Biden says.

The US president stresses that he believes that the country will do better if he is re-elected.

Biden laughs when a reporter points out that he mixed up Putin and Zelensky when introducing the Ukrainian leader just an hour ago.

The reporter asks if there has been any "damage" to the reputation of the US as a result of his perceived "decline".

"Did you see any damage to our standing in my leading this conference?" Biden hits back.

"Have you seen a more successful conference?"

"The Putin piece, I was talking about Putin and I said - now at the very end, I said Putin, 'No, I'm sorry, Zelensky,' and then I added five other names."

He goes on to tout the success of the Nato conference.

Image source, Reuters

The first question is from a reporter from Reuters, who asks Biden about his thinking around staying in the race in the face of some pushback from within his own Democratic Party.

After fumbling the answer by accidentally referring to Trump as his vice-president, he goes on the attack against his opponent.

“I beat him once and I will beat him again," he says.

Biden makes his second gaffe of the night and mixes up former President Donald Trump with his Vice-President Kamala Harris.

While answering a question, he says "I wouldn't have picked Vice-President Trump...".

He mistakenly introduced Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky as "President Putin" at an earlier event.

This time he did not correct himself.

Biden turns to the situation in Gaza, and takes credit for the "framework" of a peace deal that he says "is now agreed on by both Israel and Hamas".

"I sent my team to the region to hammer out the details," he said, adding that "there are still gaps to close" in the deal.

"The trend is positive," he says, "to bring an end to this war - which should end now."

Biden ties Nato's work rallying around Ukraine to the upcoming 2024 presidential election.

“I believe the American people understand that America is stronger because of our alliances," he says.

"America cannot retreat form the world, we must lead the world," he says, drawing a contrast with Donald Trump's "America First" foreign policy platform.

Biden praises how Nato rallied behind Ukraine in the early days of Russia's war.

“Today Kyiv still stands," Biden says. "And Nato stands, stronger than it has ever been.”

“Nato is not only stronger, Nato is bigger," he said.

He apologises for a slight cough.

"I will not bow down to Putin," he later says.

He vows to keep Nato strong.

Image source, Reuters

Anthony Zurcher
Reporting from the Nato summit

So far, Joe Biden is delivering a campaign speech about his foreign policy accomplishments and taking swipes at Donald Trump.

Reporter questions will come soon enough, but the president is taking advantage of wall-to-wall media coverage tonight to make his pitch to the American people.

Image source, Reuters

Biden kicks his press conference off with a recap of this week's Nato summit.

"For those who thought Nato's time had passed, they got a rude awakening when Putin invaded Ukraine," Biden said.

His remarks have largely centred on the Russian invasion of Ukraine and his effort to rally allies to come to Kyiv's defence.

President Biden is now speaking. You can watch live on this page.

Anthony Zurcher
BBC North America correspondent, reporting from Nato

Reporters have packed into a large conference room at the Washington Convention Center. The stage has a lectern with presidential seal in front of eight American flags.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan just walked in and taken seats in the front row.

Magisterial classical music, heavy with trumpets and fife, are playing in the background, providing a jarringly upbeat soundtrack to the run-up to Joe Biden’s press conference.