US Vice President Mike Pence likely to attend Joe Biden's inauguration on January 20

File image: US Vice President Mike Pence speaking at an event in Darien, Wisconsin. (Image: AP Photo/Morry Gash)

His boss won't be there but he will be. United States Vice President Mike Pence will attend Joe Biden’s presidential inauguration at the Capitol on January 20, CNN has reported.

His boss and outgoing President Donald Trump, whose supporters stormed the Capitol in a bid to overturn the election, has already said he would give the ceremony a miss.

CNN reported that Pence was still waiting for a formal invitation even though Biden said he was glad that the outgoing vice president would be attending.

"He's welcome. I think it's important that as much as we can stick to what have been the historical precedents of how an administration changes should be maintained. And so Mike, the vice president, is welcome to come. We'd be honoured to have him there and to move forward in the transition," CNN quoted Biden as saying.

On January 8, hours before his Twitter account was permanently suspended by the social media platform, Trump had tweeted he would not attend the ceremony. "To all of those who have asked, I will not be going to the Inauguration on January 20th."

Biden will become the 46th US president at noon on January 20 regardless of Trump or Pence’s presence.

Pence had defied Trump last week by certifying Biden’s election victory. Trump had reportedly pressured his deputy to block the largely ceremonial vote counting event held by the joint session of the US Congress.

Commenting on Trump’s decision to not attend the inauguration, Biden had earlier said it was "one of the few things he (Trump) and I have ever agreed on".

After refusing to acknowledge Biden’s election victory for weeks, Trump on January 7 promised an orderly transition after the storming of the Capitol sent shockwaves across the US and the world. “Even though I totally disagree with the outcome of the election, and the facts bear me out, nevertheless there will be an orderly transition on January 20th,” Trump said in a statement issued by White House Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino.