WASHINGTON: White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said at a press briefing Friday that President Joe Biden will travel to the western Japan city of Hiroshima for four days from Thursday next week to attend a Group of Seven summit there.

The confirmation of the president’s upcoming trip came while talks continue between Democrats and Republicans to raise the federal government’s borrowing limit to avoid a default.

Biden had indicated that depending on the outcome of the negotiations, he might not attend the G-7 summit in person.

Jean-Pierre said that at the Hiroshima summit, the president and other G-7 leaders “will discuss a range of the most pressing global issues,” including support for Ukraine under Russian aggression and the food crisis.

Asked if Biden would apologize for the 1945 U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Jean-Pierre said that she was “not going to get ahead of what next week is going to look like.”

JIJI Press