Biden cancels trip to Rome at last minute to deal with wildfire emergency in California.

US president Joe Biden has cancelled a trip to Italy to focus on "directing the full federal response" to unprecedented wildfires in California, the White House said on Wednesday.

Biden had been scheduled to travel to Italy from 9-12 January to meet Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni, Pope Francis and President Sergio Mattarella in Rome.

"After returning this evening from Los Angeles, where earlier today he had met with police, fire and emergency personnel fighting the historic fires raging in the area and approved a Major Disaster declaration for California, President Biden made the decision to cancel his upcoming trip to Italy to remain focused on directing the full federal response in the days ahead," the White House said in a statement.

Five people have died and more than 100,000 residents are under evacuation orders because of the wildfires burning across Los Angeles County where a state of emergency has been declared.

Biden's visit to Italy would have been the last overseas trip for the outgoing US president who will be succeeded by Donald Trump on 20 January.

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