Washington, May 12 (IANS): US Secretary of State John Kerry will visit China and South Korea in the coming days to discuss a range of issues, the state department said.

During his May 16-17 visit to Beijing, he would meet with senior Chinese leaders to "advance US priorities" ahead of a new round of strategic and economic dialogue with China.

He would also discuss President Xi Jinping's state visit in the fall, Xinhua reported, citing a US state department statement.

The next round of the dialogue, a mechanism created in 2009 to help the US and China to manage their bilateral relations and promote communication, is to be held in the US in June, while president Xi's visit is slated for September.

While in Seoul during May 17-18, Kerry would meet with President Park Geun-hye and Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se to discuss "a range of global, regional and bilateral issues", including president Park's upcoming visit to the US.