Biden news – live: President to meet Zelensky today after skipping Nato leaders dinner over ‘big speech’ prep

President Joe Biden is set to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky today as world leaders gather for day two of a key Nato summit. The bilateral meeting, which will take place at 3.45pm local time (8.45am ET) in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius, comes after Mr Zelensky slammed Nato leaders in a tweet on Tuesday for not extending membership to Ukraine . The Ukrainian president called the inaction ‘absurd’ while Nato leaders – including Turkey – said they would happily welcome Sweden into the membership. Last week, Mr Biden approved sending controversial cluster munitions to Ukraine – but also said he thinks Ukraine is ‘not ready’ for membership. Following the meeting, Mr Biden will deliver a speech to the Nato leaders at 7.45pm local time (12.45pm ET) highlighting how the US and its allies are supporting Ukraine in its war with Russia. This ‘big speech’ was blamed for Mr Biden’s decision to shun a dinner with Nato leaders on Tuesday night, with the White House saying that the 80-year-old president was instead preparing it at his Lithuania hotel. Key Points Biden welcomes Turkey agreeing to back Sweden for NATO White House touts America’s ‘revitalized’ alliances during European trip Biden hails ‘rock-solid’ US-UK relationship Biden arrives at Lithuanian Exhibition and Conference Center for day two of Nato summit 09:26 , Rachel Sharp President Joe Biden has arrived at the Lithuanian Exhibition and Conference Center for day two of the Nato summit. The presidential motorcade pulled up at the site at around 10.15am local time (3.15am ET). Among the US staff with him was: Ambassador Julianne Smith, U.S. Permanent Representative to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Jake Sullivan, Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs Karine Jean-Pierre, Assistant to the President & Press Secretary Colin Kahl, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Adam Hodge, NSC Acting Senior Director for Press, National Security Council WATCH LIVE: World leaders meet for Nato summit’s second day in Lithuanian capital Vilnius 08:32 , Rachel Sharp Fox News host says she’s ‘turned on’ by Biden’s alleged bad temper Tuesday 11 July 2023 21:01 , Graeme Massie ‘Swearing at people, it’s a quirk,’ said Lisa Kennedy on Rupert Murdoch’s network. Fox News host says she’s ‘turned on’ by Biden’s alleged bad temper Biden skips Nato leadership dinner Tuesday 11 July 2023 20:04 , Graeme Massie President Joe Biden skipped the Nato leadership dinner on Tuesday night in Vilnius, Lithuania, with White House officials citing his busy schedule on his European trip. The 80-year-old president instead returned to his hotel and was ‘preparing for a big speech tomorrow, in addition to another day at the summit’ US officials told reporters. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, President Joe Biden, and Britain’s Prime Minister Rishi Sunak pictured at the conclusion of the family photo at the NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, Tuesday, July 11, 2023. (AP) Read the Nato communique’s key passage on policy toward Ukraine. Tuesday 11 July 2023 18:45 , Oliver O’Connell We fully support Ukraine’s right to choose its own security arrangements. Ukraine’s future is in Nato. We reaffirm the commitment we made at the 2008 Summit in Bucharest that Ukraine will become a member of Nato, and today we recognise that Ukraine’s path to full Euro-Atlantic integration has moved beyond the need for the Membership Action Plan. Ukraine has become increasingly interoperable and politically integrated with the Alliance, and has made substantial progress on its reform path. In line with the 1997 Charter on a Distinctive Partnership between Nato and Ukraine and the 2009 Complement, Allies will continue to support and review Ukraine’s progress on interoperability as well as additional democratic and security sector reforms that are required. Nato Foreign Ministers will regularly assess progress through the adapted Annual National Programme. The Alliance will support Ukraine in making these reforms on its path towards future membership. We will be in a position to extend an invitation to Ukraine to join the Alliance when Allies agree and conditions are met. Biden not attending Nato leaders dinner Tuesday 11 July 2023 18:26 , Oliver O’Connell President Joe Biden is not attending tonight’s dinner with Nato leaders. When asked by the press pool why Mr Biden is not attending, a US official said the president has four full days of official business and is preparing for a big speech tomorrow in addition to another day at the summit. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will attend the dinner. Nato revamped defence plans against Russian attack after Ukraine invasion Tuesday 11 July 2023 18:05 , Oliver O’Connell President Joe Biden and his Nato counterparts on Tuesday endorsed the biggest shakeup since the Cold War of the way the military alliance would respond to any attack on its territory by Russia. Inspired in part by Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine , the highly-secretive defense plans lay out which of the 31 member countries would be called on to respond to an attack anywhere from the Arctic and Baltic Sea regions through the northern Atlantic and south to the Mediterranean and Black Seas. ‘Peace in the Euro-Atlantic area has been shattered,’ the leaders said in a statement, laying out the twin threats posed by Russia and terrorism. ‘Together, this family of plans will significantly improve our ability and readiness to deter and defend against any threats, including on short or no notice, and ensure timely reinforcement of all Allies.’ Biden reaffirms commitment to ally Lithuania Tuesday 11 July 2023 17:00 , Oliver O’Connell Biden thanks Erdogan for his ‘diplomacy and courage’ Tuesday 11 July 2023 16:39 , Oliver O’Connell President Joe thanks President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for his ‘diplomacy and courage’ in allowing for Sweden’s accession while the Turkish leader wishes Mr Biden ‘the best of luck’ in his re-election. Mr Biden laughed: ‘Well thank you very much. Look forward to meeting you in the next five years.’ Nato says concerned over Iran’s ‘malicious activities’ on its territory Tuesday 11 July 2023 16:31 , Martha Mchardy Nato allies said on Tuesday they were seriously concerned by Iran’s ‘malicious activities’ within allied territory and called Tehran to stop its military support to Russia, including the supply of drones. ‘We call upon Iran to cease its military support to Russia, in particular its transfer of Uncrewed Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) which have been used to attack critical infrastructure, causing widespread civilian casualties,’ the 31-member alliance said in a final declaration at a summit in Lithuania. ‘We express our serious concern over Iran’s malicious activities within Allied territory.’ Watch: Biden fist pumps air as Sweden welcomes to Nato Tuesday 11 July 2023 16:20 , Oliver O’Connell Stoltenberg: Nato invite to Ukraine when ‘allies agree and conditions are met’ Tuesday 11 July 2023 16:19 , Martha Mchardy Nato secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, said Ukraine will be issued with an invitation to join the alliance ‘when allies agree and conditions are met’. He said the process to the country’s membership would move from a two-step to a one-step pathway. ‘Ukraine’s future is in Nato’, says declaration, but membership timetable not agreed Tuesday 11 July 2023 16:14 , Martha Mchardy Nato leaders have agreed at a summit in Vilnius that Ukraine’s future lies within the alliance but stopped short of handing Kyiv the invitation or timetable for accession that the country has been seeking. At the same time, Nato dropped the requirement for Ukraine to fulfil a so-called Membership Action Plan (MAP), effectively removing a hurdle on Kyiv’s way into the alliance. ‘Ukraine’s future is in Nato,’ a declaration agreed by the leaders on Tuesday said, adding Kyiv’s Euro-Atlantic integration had moved beyond the need for a Membership Action Plan. ‘We will be in a position to extend an invitation to Ukraine to join the alliance when allies agree and conditions are met,’ the declaration said. While leaders did not specify the conditions Ukraine needs to meet, they said the alliance would help Kyiv to make progress on military interoperability as well as on additional democratic and security sector reforms. Press gathering for Biden-Erdoğan bilateral meeting Tuesday 11 July 2023 16:13 , Oliver O’Connell President Joe Biden and President Recep Tayyip ErdoÄŸan will soon meet for bilateral talks on the sidelines of the Nato meeting in Vilnius. The White House sent out the following background information ahead of the meeting: On Monday, after arriving in Vilnius Turkish President Recep Tayyip ErdoÄŸan met with Nato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, clearing the way for Sweden to join NATO. ErdoÄŸan also spoke with President Charles Michele of the European Council. The meeting was closed press but Michel said on Twitter that they explored opportunities to reenergize EU-Turkey cooperation and bring it back to the forefront. President Joe Biden, who welcomed Erdogan’s commitment to Sweden’s Nato membership, is scheduled to meet with the President of Turkey at 6:00 PM at the Lithuanian Exhibition and Conference Center. This will be the fourth meeting between President Biden and President ErdoÄŸan. They met on the sidelines of the Nato summit in Brussels in June 2021, during the summit in Madrid in June 2022, and had a pull-aside during G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia. Before today’s meeting with Biden, ErdoÄŸan held separate meetings with the Prime Minister of the UK Rishi Sunak, President Emmanuel Macron of France, and Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau. Nato members agree declaration language for Ukraine membership Tuesday 11 July 2023 16:10 , Martha Mchardy Nato leaders have reached agreement over how to define their future relationship with Ukraine, including its membership bid, four diplomats said on Tuesday. One of the diplomats said the final wording on the declaration regarding Ukraine’s future membership read that Nato ‘will be in a position to extend an invitation to join the Alliance when Allies agree and conditions are met. Sullivan: No caveats on F-16s to Türkiye Tuesday 11 July 2023 15:57 , Oliver O’Connell President Joe Biden’s National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told a press conference in Vilnius today that there are no caveats on the transfer of F-16s to Türkiye. ‘President Biden has been clear & unequivocal for months that he’s supported the transfer of F-16s to Türkiye, that this is in our national interests. It’s in the interests of NATO that Türkiye get that capability. He has placed no caveats or conditions on that in his public and private comments over the past few months. And he intends to move forward with that transfer in consultation with Congress.’ Dutch PM praises UK’s response to war in Ukraine Tuesday 11 July 2023 15:39 , Martha Mchardy The Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte has praised Rishi Sunak and the UK’s leadership in responding to Russia’s aggression in Ukraine. In a warm meeting between the two leaders, Mr Sunak said he would ‘miss’ working with the outgoing leader after Mr Rutte announced his plans to leave politics following the collapse of his coalition government. Addressing his counterpart during a bilateral at the Nato Vilnius summit, the British Prime Minister said: ‘Mark, we were very sad to hear your news and thank you for your incredible service.’ Mr Rutte responded saying: ‘I’m not done yet. You are stuck with me at least until the election. Hopefully there will be a new government soon, in the Netherlands it takes a little while.’ Mr Sunak said: ‘You’ve been a great friend to the UK, so we will miss you. I look forward to continuing our work together particularly as we have stood together, you and I, as have other, to defend and support Ukraine.’ Mr Rutte replied: ‘And your leadership there, you personally and the UK as a whole, working with you has been incredible.’ He said the joint work on the fighter jet coalition to provide Kyiv with war plane capabilities was ‘fantastic’. Zelensky lands in Lithuania for Nato summit Tuesday 11 July 2023 15:23 , Martha Mchardy Volodymyr Zelensky has landed in Vilnius for the Nato summit where alliance members are set to discuss Ukraine’s membership. The Ukrainian president said on Twitter that he saw ‘no readiness neither to invite Ukraine to Nato nor to make it a member.’ President Biden cracks joke about Nato Tuesday 11 July 2023 15:14 , Martha Mchardy President Joe Biden was cracking jokes as he met Nato leaders at a key summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, on Tuesday. Speaking to Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda, he joked that Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin ‘alone’ can protect Nato. ‘We have the Secretary of Defence with us today. We can send him alone – he’s enough,’ he said, before adding on a more serious note that ‘we’re all in a war together’. The president also said that he is ‘looking forward’ to welcoming Sweden into the membership after Turkey announced its support for the move. Rishi Sunak holds