Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy are expected to hold a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of a three-day Group of Seven summit in Italy from Thursday, Japanese government sources said Monday.

At the meeting, the two sides are expected to conclude a bilateral agreement on Japan's long-term support for Ukraine's recovery and reconstruction. It will include a provision for the two governments to hold talks within 24 hours of a new Russian attack.

The Kishida-Zelenskyy meeting will be the first in person since they met on the sidelines of the previous G7 summit in Hiroshima in May last year.

Japan has so far pledged more than $12 billion in aid to Ukraine. The new agreement will clarify Japan's readiness to provide nonlethal equipment, remove land mines and develop infrastructure.

The two leaders will also confirm that their countries will accelerate work to prepare an agreement to share confidential information.

In July last year, the leaders of the G7 major democracies issued a joint statement featuring security cooperation for Ukraine, noting that details would be worked out in bilateral talks with Ukraine.

While Britain and France have already concluded agreements with Ukraine that cover military aid, Japan launched talks in October. Japan aims to bolster its ties with Ukraine by continuing its nonmilitary assistance, given its constitutional constraints.