Image source, EPA

We're still waiting for Biden and Zelensky to speak, so let's take a look at the background between the G7 and Ukraine.

Since Russia first invaded Ukraine in 2022, the US, UK, EU, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, France and Japan have imposed more than 18,000 sanctions on Russia. Much of the sanctions have been financial.

About $350bn in Russia's foreign currency reserves have been frozen. Other penalites have been sanctioning oligarchs, imposing trade restrictions, and banning flights from Russia.

The G7 itself gave Ukraine $18.4b at the outset of the war in May 2022, with US and European allies pitching in billions to aid the country in its fight against a Russian attack.

Now, the G7 is planning to loan $50bn in funds from Ukraine, raised from interest on frozen these Russian assets.

You can read more about Russia's sanctions here.

US President Joe Biden and President Volodymyr Zelensky are scheduled to hold a press conference on the G7 sidelines in the next few minutes.

Stick with us, we will bring you the latest updates as they happen.

What does it mean for Ukraine and the course of war?published at 18:47 British Summer Time 13 June

18:47 BST 13 June

Jean Mackenzie
Reporting from Ukraine

This is a sizeable pot of money, if you compare it to the $61bn worth of US military aid that was finally agreed in May.

Some of those in Kyiv, who had been pushing for this cash, had wanted the G7 to release the whole frozen fund of $300bn, not merely the interest it is generating.

The European Central Bank had ruled that out. Nevertheless, this has been welcomed as an extremely important first step in supporting Ukraine’s wartime economy.

Unlike the US aid package, which directly translated into more missiles being sent to the front line, this money will likely not arrive until the end of the year, meaning it will have little impact on the current course of the war.

For now, Ukraine still urgently needs more weapons it says - primarily air defence systems, to blunt Russia’s attacks on its cities and power stations, as well as long awaited F-16 fighter jets, which it hopes will start arriving as early as this summer.

This $50b loan is more of a long-term solution to Ukraine’s financial and defence woes. Currently the west, on top of the weapons it has provided, is also sending Ukraine billions of dollars a year to keep its economy afloat. That includes paying the salaries of its teachers and doctors, and funding its pension payments and social care.

The idea is that Ukraine can use this money to invest in its own defence industry, and to produce weapons in collaboration with others, and in that way, over time, become less reliant on its western allies for its defence and survival. It will also be able to spend the funds repairing some of the extensive damage caused by the war, especially to its power stations, which are expensive to fix.

And this money is not just any money, it is Russian money. This is hugely symbolic for Ukraine. Its aggressor is now being forced to pay, not only to repair the devastation it has wrought, but for Ukraine to defend itself. One of President Zelensky’s closest advisors has said that the west’s decision to punish Russia in this way, in one sense, marks a turning point in the war.

The G7 nations have agreed to a $50bn deal to fund Ukraine, according to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

The money will come via various frozen Russian assets.

"I confirm to you that we have reached political agreement to provide additional financial support to Ukraine of approximately $50 billion by the end of the year," said Meloni, who spoke with wire agency AFP.

France's President Emmanuel Macron also confirmed the deal would go ahead, according to Reuters.

Image source, Getty Images

The G7 countries have signalled they will free up $50bn (£39.2bn) from frozen Russian assets to fund Ukraine.

The money would be used to help Ukraine quickly acquire everything from weapons to investments into the reconstruction of its energy infrastructure.

On the sidelines of the G7, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz talked to reporters about the plan.

"This is a very strong commitment which, by the way, gives the people of Ukraine the courage to do what is now necessary to defend their independence and their sovereignty," he said.

"It is also a clear signal to the Russian president that he can’t simply sit this thing out and hope that because of fiscal problems in some countries which today support Ukraine, he will one day win this war.

"He will not."

Image source, Getty Images

This year's G7 summit will be held from 13 to 15 June in Apulia, in Italy.

It will be the first major international forum hosted by the Italian prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, since she took office in October 2022.

As well as the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, Italy says it wants the summit to focus on Africa and migration, economic security, and international co-operation on artificial intelligence (AI).

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has begun meeting with G7 leaders in Italy, including UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

Images also showed the two of them chatting outside the meeting venue.

Image source, Reuters

The G7 (Group of Seven) is an organisation of the world's seven largest so-called "advanced" economies, which dominate global trade and the international financial system.

They are Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the United States.

The EU is not a member of the G7, but attends the annual summits.

Throughout the year, G7 ministers and officials hold meetings, form agreements and publish joint statements on global events.

This year, Italy holds the presidency.

James Landale
Diplomatic correspondent, in Puglia

Essentially, world leaders have an idea to make more cash for Ukraine by using all the Russian assets that were frozen when the country invaded Ukraine - it's about $300bn in all.

Officials have decided they can't go full hog and take the whole thing, because of the financial ramifications of that.

But this pot is generating a lot of interest - about $3bn a year - so their idea is to use that interest to fund Ukrainian defence.

The idea is to take out a loan on the international markets, give about $50bn to the Ukrainians, and use the $3bn to pay off the interest on that loan.

It sounds relatively straightforward, but it's hugely complicated. There are still lots of technicalities to sort out.

How will Russia respond to Ukraine funding?published at 17:44 British Summer Time 13 June

17:44 BST 13 June

Steven Rosenberg
Moscow correspondent

Using revenue from frozen Russian assets to help Ukraine: it’s been described in the West as a "creative approach" to assisting Kyiv.

Russia has a different word for it: "theft."

“It’s criminal, cynical and another blow to international law,” said Maria Zakharova, Russian foreign ministry spokesperson at a press briefing.

So how will Russia respond?

“There are enough European assets and funds in Russia,” Zakahrova added. “Our measures in response, which are inevitable, will be extremely painful for Brussels. They will have to pay for their madness from their own wallet.”

Last month President Putin signed a decree allowing Russia to confiscate the assets of American companies and individuals as compensation for any Russian assets confiscated in the United States.

There is an irony here. Russia, the country which launched a full-scale invasion of its neighbour, a sovereign independent state, is now complaining about "violations of international law".

Will the multi-billion dollar G7 aid fund for Ukraine force a Russian U-turn on its war in Ukraine? Almost certainly not.

What it will do is send a clear message to Moscow that, for now, Ukraine’s allies are determined to support the country.

Plans to fund Ukraine, reportedly with $50b raised from frozen Russian assets, have been approved by G7 nations, according to officials.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said more financial support for Ukraine was coming and told reporters at the G7 Summit that Russian President Vladimir Putin's plan to wait for international support for Ukraine to end had failed.

Image source, EPA

Ukrainain President Volodymyr Zelensky has arrived at the G7 summit in Puglia, Italy, ahead of his expected meetings with several world leaders.

Here he is seen greeting Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

He is expected to meet with US President Joe Biden later.

Welcome back to our live coverage of the G7 summit in Puglia, Italy.

World leaders are meeting to discuss a range of issues, including the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, climate change, technology and more.

Later, US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will hold a joint press conference.

They are expected to talk about the US plan to use frozen Russian assets to raise $50bn (£39bn) for Ukraine.

We'll bring you all the updates from that conversation, so stick with us.

In the meantime, you can catch up on the latest on the plan to raise money for Ukraine here, and learn more about the G7 here.

Thanks for joining us for the start of the G7 summit in Puglia, Italy.

The conference will continue for three days, with leaders discussing a range of topics - including the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, migration and climate change.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will be there later this afternoon, where he says he is expecting "important decisions" about his country's future.

You can read more analysis from Mark Lowen in Italy here.

And there's more general information about the G7 here.

The G7 is known for its "family photo" of its leaders - but we've just had this pair of photos from Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who is rather enjoying the photo opportunities.

Image source, EPA

Image source, EPA

Paul Kirby
Europe digital editor

Image source, LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP

As we've been reporting, Ukraine's president is looking for "important decisions" from the G7 during his visit today.

He's singled out his planned meetings with the prime ministers of Italy, the UK, Canada, the head of the European Council who represents the EU's 27 governments and the head of the International Monetary Fund.

But quite aside from the planned $50bn loan set to be agreed, Kyiv is very keen on new security deals being signed with the US and Japan. The small print will be worth looking at here and Ukraine has already signed other such deals since January.

What we expect from Japan's Fumio Kishida is a 10-year deal that not only includes long-term support but also promises an immediate and concrete response to any further Russian invasion. That's what Kyiv got from the UK, with a promise of talks within 24 hours on swift and sustained aid.

Paul Kirby
Europe digital editor

Image source, LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP

As our correspondent Mark Lowen has just explained below, Giorgia Meloni is hosting this summit at the height of her powers, having seen her far-right Brothers of Italy top the vote in last weekend's European election.

But for the two men leading the traditional engine of Europe, France and Germany, the picture is very different.

Not only has France's Emmanuel Macron seen his party trounced by the far right at the weekend, but he's called snap elections which could end up weakening his Renaissance party's position in the French parliament too.

For French political scientist Bertrand Badie, that could well weaken his voice on the international stage, including over Russia's war with Ukraine and the war in Gaza as well global security and climate change. "Everything's on hold and his voice can only commit to the future with difficulty - even in the short term," he told France Inter radio.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is also going through a shaky political period at home, beaten into third place in Sunday's European vote not just by the conservative opposition but by the far right as well. He hasn't called elections but there are three regional votes coming up in September where he and his coalition partners can expect more bad news.

Mark Lowen
Reporting from Puglia

For Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, this week she will be basking not only in the glorious Italian sun but also in her victory at the European elections last weekend.

Her party - the far-right Brothers of Italy, to some extent softened under her leadership - stormed to a convincing win, making her the only Western European leader strengthened by the vote.

With a poor showing from Emmanuel Macron and Olaf Scholz's parties in that election, and Rishi Sunak, Justin Trudeau and Joe Biden all struggling domestically, it's little wonder that Ms Meloni boasted that Italy was going into this summit with “the strongest government of all”.

Who would have imagined that the country whose notorious political volatility has ushered in almost 70 governments since World War Two would now be seen as the stable one as the others lose their footing?

We've just heard the opening remarks from Italy's Giorgia Meloni as G7 leaders gathered at the round table. And it's not just help for Ukraine that is on the agenda over the next three days.

The war in Gaza is also expected to be discussed. All G7 leaders have previously backed , externalUS President Joe Biden's plan to end hostilities - that included an immediate ceasefire, the release of hostages, and an increase in aid.

Migration is also thought to be on the agenda, particularly people travelling from Africa to Europe.

Italy is asking other nations to contribute financially to its Mattei Plan, which gives African countries grants and loans to develop their economies. But many commentators suspect it may be cover for Italy to crack down on migration.

At last year's G7, Japan pushed for a plan for international economic security.

The anti-coercion pact that was adopted after that meeting is designed to stop countries - such as China and Russia - using their economic strength to impose their will on others. It is thought the US is keen for the issue to be discussed again this time out.

The safety of AI was also raised last year, with the set up of a process to promote "safe, secure, and trustworthy AI worldwide".

Those measures are only voluntary, and further regulations could be drawn up in Italy.

For more on the role of the G7 and what issues could be discussed this year, click here.