Biden will cut trip abroad short over debt ceiling talks

President Joe Biden will head to Japan this week to attend the G-7 summit but said he will cut short the remainder of his trip abroad so he can return to Washington “to be back for the final negotiations with congressional leaders” over the debt ceiling.

The president is scheduled to leave Wednesday for Hiroshima. He had planned to make visits afterward to Papua New Guinea and then to the Quad Summit in Australia. Biden will instead return to Washington on Sunday.

The stops in Australia and Papua New Guinea were meant to affirm the U.S. commitment to the Pacific as China’s influence in the region rises. Biden said he had already spoken with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to explain why he was postponing his visit.