A senior U.S. official will embark on a trip to South Korea and three other Asian nations on Wednesday. 

The State Department said in a press release on Tuesday that Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs David Stilwell will visit Seoul next Wednesday as part of a regional trip that also includes stops in Japan, the Philippines and Thailand.

The department said Stilwell, who took office last month, will meet with top officials at South Korea's presidential office and the Foreign Ministry to discuss further strengthening the U.S.-South Korea alliance and enhancing bilateral cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region.

The new assistant secretary will visit Tokyo this week ahead of his Seoul visit and meet with senior Japanese government officials to coordinate alliance efforts on regional and global issues.

Stilwell's trip comes amid escalating tensions between Seoul and Tokyo following Japanese export restrictions and disputed legal cases involving colonial-era forced labor.