The U.S. pointman on North Korea will visit Japan and China next week for discussions with his counterparts over how to deal with Pyongyang, the State Department announced Thursday.

Amb. Sung Kim, special representative for North Korea policy, will be in Tokyo on Jan. 27-28 for a trilateral meeting with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts, the department said in a release.

Kim will be accompanied by Sydney Seiler, special envoy for the six-party talks on the North's nuclear program, as well as Allison Hooker, director for Korea at the White House's National Security Council, it said.

From Tokyo, Kim will travel to Beijing on Jan. 29 for meetings with senior Chinese government officials, including special representative for Korean Peninsula affairs Wu Dawei, the department said.

Kim is scheduled to return home on Jan. 30, it said. (Yonhap)