A reporter asks the president how the US will manage its relationship with China amid the superpower's military activity in the Taiwan Strait.

Biden says the US and China agreed to a military hotline between the two nations, before the "silly balloon" that was shot down in American territory and "everything changed in terms of talking to one another".

But he says he thinks relations will "thaw very shortly".

Biden confirms the G7's "shared and unwavering commitment to stand with the brave people of Ukraine".

He calls for a "just peace that respects Ukraine's sovereignty and terratorial integrity".

Russia started this war and could end it, today, says Biden.

The US president says he - and fellow G7 members and allies - had reassured President Zelensky that the West "will not waver" in their support of Ukraine.

"Putin will not break our resolve," Biden says.

We've heard a lot about China at this summit - which Chinese leaders do not attend. Earlier, Rishi Sunak called China the "biggest challenge of our age".

Now, President Biden stresses the joint decision by the G7 nations to "de-risk and diversify" from the Beijing government.

"We are not looking to decouple, we are looking to de-risk and diversify," he told reporters.

The president stressed the importance of not being dependent on Chinese supply chains, resisting economic coercion and countering "harmful practices that hurt our workers".

"It means protecting a narrow set of advance technologies critical for our national security," he added.

"Those elements are all agreed on by the G7."

Biden says his visit to the Hiroshima memorial was a "powerful reminder of the devastating reality of nuclear war" and the need to strive for peace.

He says the G7 reiterated its commitment to a world "free from the threat of nuclear weapons".

The US president begins by addressing the budget situation in the US.

Biden says he will put forward a proposal that saves almost $1 trillion on top of the nearly $3 trillion proposed before.

He says it's time for "the other side to move" and much of what his opponents have said is "quite simply unnacceptable".

Joe Biden's news conference is about to start - we'll bring you the latest lines and clips as they come.

You can also watch the session live by pressing play at the top of the page.

Image source, Reuters

We've just received pictures of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park. They earlier visited the memorial museum, and laid flowers.

The dome which survived the 1945 atomic bomb is seen in the background.

Image source, PA Media

We're still waiting for Joe Biden's news conference to start. So in the meantime, here's a picture just in of UK PM Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty boarding their plane to leave Japan.

Earlier, Sunak said China was the "biggest challenge of our age".

While we wait for Joe Biden, here's some more on the claims and counter-claims in Bakhmut.

Russia and Ukraine have been fighting over the eastern Ukrainian city, which is now totally destroyed, for months.

Over the weekend, Russia claimed it was in control of the whole area. President Zelensky appeared to confirm that on Sunday - but his spokesman later denied this is what he meant.

Now, the Ukrainian Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar says on Telegram that , externalRussia has failed to surround the city, and that Ukrainian troops have "semi-encircled" the area.

"The advance of our troops in the suburbs on the flanks, which is still ongoing, makes it very difficult for the enemy to be in Bakhmut," she says.

In the next few minutes, we are expecting to hear from US President Joe Biden at a news conference at the G7 summit.

It comes after the US announced a $375m military package for Ukraine following a meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Back home, the president is dealing with a US Treasury Department warning that the federal government could be unable to pay all its debts - triggering a default that could cause chaos in financial markets.

In a new statement,, external US Secretary of State Antony Blinken confirms the 38th "drawdown" of US arms for Ukraine. President Biden earlier said the package was worth $375m.

Blinken's statement says: "This security assistance package includes additional ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, artillery ammunition, anti-tank weapons, armored medical treatment vehicles, trucks and trailers to transport heavy equipment, spare parts and other field equipment essential to strengthening Ukraine’s defenders on the battlefield.

"Russia could end its war today. Until Russia does, the United States and our allies and partners will stand united with Ukraine, for as long as it takes."

G7 worries it's being held hostage by Chinapublished at 09:23 British Summer Time 21 May 2023

09:23 BST 21 May 2023

Tessa Wong
in Hiroshima

As the G7 leaders sent a strong message to Russia by inviting Volodymyr Zelensky to Hiroshima, another rival was also on their minds - China.

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said China posed "the greatest challenge of our age" in regards to global security and prosperity, and that it was "increasingly authoritarian at home and abroad".

And in not one but two statements, the leaders of the world's richest democracies made clear to Beijing their stance on divisive issues such as the Indo-Pacific and Taiwan.

But the most important part of their message centred on what they called "economic coercion".

It's a tricky balancing act for the G7.

Through trade, their economies have become inextricably dependent on China. But competition with Beijing has increased and they disagree on many issues, including human rights.

Now, they worry they are being held hostage.

• Read more from Tessa in Japan here

Image source, Getty Images

US President Joe Biden has announced a new package of military aid for Ukraine up to $375m (£301m).

He told Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky - in a meeting on the sidelines of the G7 summit - that the US was doing all it could to strengthen the country's defence against the Russian invasion.

The package will include ammunition, artillery, armoured vehicles and training.

Thanking the US, Zelensky's Twitter account posted: "They discussed further cooperation to strengthen the defense capabilities of our country, the implementation of the Ukrainian peace formula and reconstruction projects."

After this statement, a Zelensky spokesman clarified that Ukraine was not admitting to a defeat or withdrawal in the eastern city.

Chris Mason
Political editor

I understand the prime minister had no idea — until the story broke last night in the Sunday Times and Mail On Sunday — about the home secretary’s speeding offence, or her request for help from civil servants with its consequences.

He was, I’m told, not informed about it by the Cabinet Office or the Home Office.

Image source, Getty Images

A short while ago, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak gave a news conference at the G7 world leaders' summit in Hiroshima.

Here's a recap of what he said:

• China is the "biggest challenge of our age", he says
• He states the G7 has shown unity against an "increasingly authoritarian and assertive" government in Beijing
• He has not spoken to UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman following allegations she asked civil servants to help her avoid points on her licence for speeding - a source later said he had full confidence in Braverman
• Sunak thinks UK legal migration is "too high" and is considering a range of options to bring the numbers down
• He says the UK has secured almost £18bn of new investment from Japanese businesses "in a huge vote of confidence for the UK"

• And he pays tribute to Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky and says the G7 will "stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes"

Remember, China is not part of the G7 and its leaders have not been invited to Japan.

And so, in their absence, one of the main themes of the summit has been criticism of the Beijing government.

Earlier, UK PM Rishi Sunak described China as the "biggest challenge of our age" while Australian PM Anthony Albanese said Canberra had been concerned about Beijing's actions "for some time".

Now Canada's PM Justin Trudeau has weighed in - although less confrontationally - saying that everybody wins if China raises its standards on human rights, the environment and working conditions.

We reported earlier that President Zelensky appeared to accept that the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut had fallen entirely into Russian hands.

But a spokesman now says that wasn't Zelensky's intention.

Instead, the spokesman says, Zelensky was confirming the destruction of the city - not the withdrawal of all Ukrainian troops from the area.

Zelenksy's comments on Bakhmut come just hours after Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Russian forces and mercenary fighters for capturing the city.

The Wagner mercenary group had claimed victory on Saturday.

"Vladimir Putin congratulated the assault units of Wagner as well as all servicemen of units of the Russian armed forces who provided them with the necessary support and flank cover, on the completion of the operation to liberate Artemovsk [the Soviet-era name for Bakhmut]," the Russian TASS news agency reported, quoting a Kremlin statement,

On Saturday, Wagner's founder Yevgeny Prigozhin appeared in a video with his fighters claiming to have captured "the whole city".

Wagner mercenaries have been leading efforts to take the eastern city since August last year and previously claimed to have seized it.

Ukraine then denied the claim.

Image source, Telegram