Image source, Rishi Sunak

Now on a lighter note, neither the UK nor Australian prime minister could resist adding to a febrile Ashes series last night during their bilateral meeting.

Both came armed with gifts to exchange, as is diplomatic tradition, but also took the opportunity to have a little dig and remind one another of the oldest and fiercest rivalry in cricket.

Australia are 2-1 up in the five test series, but England fought back in the latest match to keep their hopes alive.

Anthony Albanese brought both a piece of paper reminding Rishi Sunak of the scores on the doors as it stands, as well as a printed picture of England batter Jonny Bairstow's controversial stumping in the second test.

The pair have already been embroiled in a minor and good-natured diplomatic row about Bairstow's wicket.

Sunak gave as good as he got, however, coming armed with his own photo of England's Mark Wood and Chris Woakes hugging after hitting the winning runs at Headingley on Sunday.

Not to be outdone after Albanese produced the photo of Bairstow's dozy dismissal, Sunak joked "sorry I forgot to bring sandpaper" - a reference to Australia's infamous 2019 cheating scandal where key players were caught on camera tampering with the ball during a game against South Africa.

Seemingly showing off that he's a good sport, Albanese shared a video, external of the friendly exchange on his Twitter account.

Let's look at why there is friction over Ukraine joining Nato.

Firstly, Kyiv accepts it cannot join while it's at war, because Nato countries must defend each other.

On Tuesday Nato announced a "clear path towards Ukraine's membership", but allies are at loggerheads about its membership when the Russian invasion ends.

Nato previously agreed - in 2008 - that Ukraine "will" become a member at some point.

The UK wants it to be fast-tracked, and the Baltic states and eastern European nations want the alliance to make clear what further conditions Ukraine needs to meet.

But some allies, including the US and Germany, are more cautious. They want Kyiv to tackle corruption, strengthen the judiciary, and ensure civilian control over military first.

They're also worried it could lead to Nato being dragged into the war.

Read more detail here.

Image source, PA Media

Security arrangements between Nato and Ukraine “will not be a substitute for Nato membership”, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s office says following his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the alliance’s summit in Vilnius.

The statement references the security guarantees discussed by Nato allies for Ukraine, which will be announced by the G7 group of countries later today.

The UK strongly supports Kyiv's bid to join the military bloc, and Sunak said earlier this week that Ukraine’s “rightful place is in Nato”.

Asked about the US decision to supply Ukraine with controversial cluster bombs, Zelensky thanks President Joe Biden and Congress for agreeing to deliver them.

He says he understands people have a different view on the use of the munitions, which are banned by more than 120 countries - including many Nato allies.

But Zelensky adds people should view the move "from a position of fairness", noting that Russia has "constantly" deployed the destructive explosives on Ukraine's territory since invading last year.

Neither the US, Russia nor Ukraine are signatory to the international convention banning the use of cluster munitions, which distribute large numbers of tiny bomblets from a rocket, missile or artillery shell that scatters them in mid-flight over a wide area.

They are widely regarded as posing a particular risk to civilians, especially children, as many of these smaller bombs can fail to detonate on landing.

Ukraine's leader adds they plan to only use the weapons on military targets in occupied territories.

The press conference has now concluded, with both men sharing a hug on stage before heading off to the first meeting of the Nato Ukraine council.

We get a lighter moment when a reporter asks Stoltenberg how quickly Ukraine can expect F-16s.

Zelensky humourously asks if the reporter wants him to also answer.

When Stoltenberg says the president should answer, Zelensky says "no, no, no answer please" to laughter in the room.

"You can also just answer all these three questions," he adds.

Asked if Nato's moves at this summit have brought allies closer to war with Russia, Stoltenberg says there's already a fully fledged war going on in Europe with "no risk free option" for Nato.

"But the biggest risk is if President Putin wins, because then the message is if you use military force, when he violates international law, when he invades a neighbour, then he gets what he wants," the Nato chief adds.

Stoltenberg says this is the biggest danger to Nato, confirming his view that Ukraine has the right to choose its own path and alliances.

"We can never allow that Moscow starts to decide who can and cannot be a member of Nato. Russia has been against every enlargement of Nato.

"It's for Nato allies and Ukraine to decide when to become a member, Moscow doesn't have a veto on that."

Sky News asks Zelensky if allies have done enough to show support to Ukraine joining Nato.

Zelensky says Nato has given a signal - likening it to Ukraine's candidacy to join the EU - and says it's a powerful signal to Russia that Ukraine will be an independent state.

In response to a second question, Zelensky says he understands some people are "afraid" to talk about Ukraine's membership of Nato because "nobody is willing to have a world war".

Ukraine's president acknowledges his country cannot be a member of the alliance while a war is going on within its border. But, he adds, "signals are important".

As a reminder, Nato treats an armed attack on one member as an attack on all - meaning they are obliged to help their allies.

Stoltenberg and Zelensky are now taking questions from reporters.

On membership, Ukraine's president says what's most important is to have results, and he can see some specific points making Kyiv closer to Nato.

He says it's difficult as partners are living under under different conditions, whereas in Ukraine "survival" matters.

Overall, he strikes a conciliatory tone - compared to his tweet yesterday.

Zelensky praises the results of the summit so far, but goes on to say Ukraine receiving an invitation to join Nato - which is not yet formally on the table - would have been the ideal outcome.

Image source, EPA

Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelensky now starts speaking.

Speaking in Ukrainian he says, Ukraine will always be a contributor to our common security, and calls the new packages of defence support "positive news".

He continues he is grateful to those leaders who helped with the package and for the "important steps" on simplifying the process for Nato membership for Ukraine.

He adds Ukrainian soldiers have proven democracy is stronger than "terrorist attacks" from Russia

Stoltenberg continues by saying decisions made in Vilnius will mark a new beginning in the chapter between Nato and Ukraine.

"Today we meet as equals - I look forward to the day we meet as allies," he says.

Image source, Reuters

Stoltenberg says the inaugural Nato-Ukraine council will begin in a few minutes, and they will "meet as equals".

He says they will hold crisis consultations and take decisions jointly.

"Ukraine is now closer to Nato than ever before," he adds.

He also recapped Nato has simplified the plan for Ukraine to join - but only when conditions are met.

Jens Stoltenberg opens his remarks by welcoming Volodymyr Zelensky to the Nato summit.

He says Russian President Vladimir Putin underestimated the bravery of Ukraine's people, the courage of its armed forces and the determination of the country's leadershio.

Stoltenberg says Putin also underestimated the unity and strength of Nato's members in the face of his invasion.

He says the military alliance will continue to stand with Ukraine as long as it takes, adding Nato has already provided tens of billions of dollars worth of support over the last year.

Image source, Volodymyr Zelensky

Before heading into his current meeting with the head of Nato, Volodymyr Zelensky spoke to Rishi Sunak as part of his back-to-back conversations with Nato leaders.

After the meeting, Ukraine's president says he thanked the UK's prime minister for supporting Ukraine's desire to join Nato and for "providing Ukraine with effective security guarantees" in the period before joining the alliance.

He adds that he is "particularly grateful" for the UK hosting the recent Ukraine Recovery Conference in London and the "decisions taken to provide our country with long-term financial support, in particular by allocating frozen [Russian] assets for Ukraine's reconstruction".

Lewis Vaughan Jones
Reporting from the Nato summit

Hello from the media centre here at the Nato summit - this is the balcony where we’re broadcasting from:

Down below is row after row of the world’s press. Fuelled by coffee, bananas and biscuits (they’re the free offerings in the canteen here in Vilnius).

The big screens in the distance show the main events from the summit.

We’re all listening out for President Volodymyr Zelensky's reaction to yesterday’s offer from Nato and also waiting to hear from President Joe Biden a little later.

You can catch me broadcasting live from the press room on the BBC News Channel throughout the day.

One of President Zelensky's goals for today was to secure more military support for Ukraine, so he'll be pleased that Germany has agreed to send Ukraine more US-made Patriot missiles and launchers.

Zelensky confirmed the news a little earlier, after meeting German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

This highly sophisticated air-defence system has a range of up to 60 miles (100km), depending on the type of missile used - which can cost up to $3m (£2.3m) each.

Ukraine has been using Patriot missiles to great effect since receiving them earlier this year, including to shoot down Russia's Kinzhal hypersonic missiles.

Take a look at how they work below:

Image source, .

Writing on Telegram after his meeting with Scholz, Zelensky says more Patriot capability is key to protecting Ukrainian civilians from Russian strikes.

Image source, EPA

Ukraine's President Zelensky and the head of Nato, Jens Stoltenberg, are due to speak at a joint press conference soon.

Yesterday, Zelensky didn't hold back, candidly describing the lack of timeline for Kyiv's accession to becoming a full Nato member as "absurd".

But he struck a more conciliatory tone this morning, laying out his priorities for the day's negotiations and thanking allies for their support.

We'll bring you what they say here, so stick with us for updates.

Rishi Sunak and President Zelensky's meeting was held behind closed doors - but cameras caught their greeting and some of their pre-meeting chats.

Take a look: