Volodymyr Zelensky is set to fly to Japan to meet western leaders as US President Joe Biden informed G7 leaders that Washington will support a joint effort with allies to train Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets, the Associated Press and CNN reported on Friday.

The Ukrainian President was only supposed to address the G7 summit virtually — as he did last year — but it emerged on Friday he would attend in person.

Ukraine is seeking the US-made jets as it seeks to press on with its biggest advance for months against invading Russian troops before a planned counteroffensive. It says the F-16s are far more effective than Soviet-era jets it currently has.

Biden said decisions on when, how many and who will provide the jets, built by Lockheed Martin, will be made in the coming months while training is underway, the AP reported, citing two people familiar with the matter.

The training will be conducted in Europe, the AP reported.

A small number of European countries have a supply of US-made F-16s, including the Netherlands, which has signalled a willingness to export some of them to Ukraine.

But the US would have to approve such third-party transfer because of the jets’ sensitive technology.

Zelensky is expected to join the G7 summit just after it agreed to place even more sanctions on Russia in retaliation for its invasion of Ukraine. Attendance in Hiroshima on Sunday would bring Zelensky into potential conflict with Narendra Modi and Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who have not opposed the invasion to the extent that western allies would like.

In February, when he visited the UK, the Ukrainian President presented the Houses of Parliament with a “wings for freedom” helmet.

The gift was part of Zelensky’s long campaign to persuade western allies to provide his country with jets.

The UK is expected to help Ukrainian pilots with training, but defence secretary Ben Wallace has made clear Britain will not be providing its Typhoon jets.

However Zelensky appears, the leaders gathered in Hiroshima will be talking over the next three days about all dimensions of Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Oleksii Danilov, the head of Ukraine’s national defence council, announced Zelensky’s trip on national television on Friday following news reports that he would attend.

“Very important things will be done there; therefore, the physical presence of our president is important in order to defend our interests,” Danilov said.

The Daily Telegraph, London, and AP/PTI