Biden, 81, greets Italy's Giorgia Meloni with a hug, kisses and an awkward salute at the G7 as she basks in her election victories and he faces a polling crisis

President Joe Biden kicked off the G7 summit in Italy with a warm greeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who he kissed on the head and gave an odd salute.

Biden was the last of the world leaders to arrive, having landed in Italy's Apulia region Wednesday night.

The two shared a prolonged greeting, shaking hands and clasping each other's arms.

At one point, Biden even raised his hand to engage in a halfway salute to his counterpart, who is hosting this year's confab as rotating head of the gathering.

The Italian PM had to wait for Biden to arrive, after greeting other leaders. She appeared to tailor her greetings to the personalities and cultural expectations of her guests.

The Italian gave a more traditional greeting to Germany's Olaf Schultz and Japan's Fumio Kishida, while engaging in a long embrace with France's Emmanuel Macron.

When Biden was down, he slowly walked down the short steps to gather with other leaders for a group photo. 

(It was at a similar event, the G20 in Hiroshima, where Biden nearly stumbled). 

Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni welcomed President Joe Biden at the start of the G7 summit, being held in the Apulia region

The greetings come at an event where Meloni was uniquely strengthened by elections for the European parliament, with Biden and several others struggling at home. 

Among the most endangered in the beleaguered group is British PM Rishi Sunak, who had his own very long greeting with Meloni, and who could lose power within weeks in snap elections he called. 

Biden faces his own electoral challenges. He is trailing Republican Donald Trump nationally and in key swing state polls, with a dangerously low approval rating. And while his rival was convicted in Manhattan in the Stormy Daniels case, Biden's son Hunter was convicted in Delaware on Tuesday on gun charges.

The leaders still have details to hammer out on the agenda.

Biden is set to sign a deal with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky intended to commit the U.S. to a decade of military support – a move that could pressure rival Donald Trump if he takes the White House. 

At one point the president gave a kiss on the head to the Italian leader

Meloni grabbed a moment to snap a selfie

Biden is joining the business meetings, but is not expected at Thursday night's dinner

Meloni surprised some of her critics by backing European support for Ukraine even after campaigning on a right wing platform

Meloni's hand was strengthened by conservative party gains in European parliamentary elections

Swan song: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak (L) faces snap elections in weeks

Meloni gave stage directions not just to Biden but to other leaders after she greeted them

The move is a key 'deliverable' of Biden's G7 meetings set to begin in the Apulia region of Italy Thursday. The president arrived last night, and meets one on one with Zelensky before the two leaders are set to hold a joint press conference Thursday evening local time. 

'We want to demonstrate that the U.S. supports the people of Ukraine, that we stand with them, and that we’ll continue to help address their security needs not just tomorrow but out into the future,' White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to the annual confab.

'This is a big deal,' he added Thursday. He called it a 'real marker of our commitment, not just for this month, this year, but for many years ahead, to continue to support Ukraine, both in defending against Russian aggression and in deterring future aggression.'

The bilateral deal would not have the strength of a treaty ratified by the U.S. Senate, so Biden or any successor could withdraw from it.

But it would still present a barrier should Biden's Republican successor retake the White House. It is one of several efforts considered in Congress to try to 'Trump-proof' elements of the established order.

It comes after Biden was able to push through a $60 billion measure to aid Ukraine after overcoming prolonged opposition from Republican lawmakers in Congress. Trump heads to Capitol Hill Thursday to meet with Republicans who currently control the House and are in position to potentially seize control of the Senate in the November elections.

Trump's White House tenure featured an angry impeachment clash triggered in part over a split within his administration over withholding military aid to Ukraine amid accusations by Trump allies of corruption in the country.

Moscow launched its latest invasion of Ukraine in 2022, dramatically esacalating its 2014 invasion of the Donbas region. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky meets Biden on Thursday

Biden's visit will include a meeting with Pope Francis on Friday

Another deal emerging from the G7 meetings is an agreement to provide Ukraine with a $50 billion loan amid its territorial losses to Russian forces.

The money comes from interest on $300 million in seized Russian assets – and gets around opposition from within the alliance to using those funds. 

Details were still being worked out and administration officials were loath to confirm earlier reporting on the outlines of the deal. But the funds could reach Kiev by year's end. 

Sullivan told reporters Thursday morning that progress was likely, but he stopped short of offering guarantees on Russian sovereign assets and other issues. 

'I think we’re teed up for success in that regard … we’ll have to see how the next two days unfold,' he said. 

Sullivan stopped short of promising immediate success. He said it wouldn't come today, and said leaders were on 'the verge of a good outcome.' 

'I think we will have the major tent poles of this decided,' he said, with some of the specifics yet to be resolved. 

The diplomatic slog through arcane financial architecture comes at a summit where Biden and fellow G7 leaders will meet at an elegant medieval style village at Borgo Egnazia (although local police protecting them complained of dirty water and torn mattresses on the 'Goddess of the Night' tour ship that has been housing them.

All of Hunter Biden's children are accompanying the president on the trip, which comes as the family is still processing Hunter's guilty verdict and Biden has yet to speak publicly on it.