The National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine has announced that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will participate in the meeting of G7 leaders online and not in person.

The press service of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine reported that the president will participate in the meeting of G7 leaders in Japan online.

"Who would doubt that our president would be present there [at the G7 summit – ed.]? We are confident that our president will be where he needs to be, anywhere in the world, to address the sustainability of our country.

Very important things will be decided there, so the physical presence of our president is absolutely important in order to defend our interests, to provide clear proposals and clear arguments on the events that are taking place in our country," Danilov said on air during the national joint 24/7 newscast.

The Japanese government stated on Thursday that Zelenskyy would attend the G7 Summit in Hiroshima online.

Bloomberg, citing its sources, reported that Zelenskyy would participate in person.

Added: Later on Friday, Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that he had arrived in Saudi Arabia to participate in the League of Arab States summit. So at the moment, it is not clear whether the NSDC statement is true.

The summit of the G7 leaders starts on 19 May in the Japanese city of Hiroshima, as the summit participants plan to announce new sanctions against Russia.