U.S. Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg will visit South Korea, Japan and China next week to coordinate stances on inter-Korean talks.

The State Department announced Thursday that Steinberg will visit Seoul on Wednesday, Tokyo on Thursday and Beijing on Friday.

Steinberg and officials of the three countries are expected to analyze whether a resumption of inter-Korean high-level military talks is in line with improving South-North relations. Enhanced South-North ties are considered a precondition to a reopening of the stalled six-way nuclear talks.

The officials are also expected to focus on assessing whether the North can guarantee sincerity in its pledges and proposals.

Steinberg’s upcoming visit follows Wednesday’s U.S.-China summit and trips to the three countries earlier this month by U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Policy Stephen Bosworth.