Kerry's scheduled trip to Mideast, Asia

The United States has confirmed schedule of the forecast tour of Secretary of State John Kerry to the Middle East and Asia. "Secretary Kerry will travel to Istanbul, Turkey on April 6, where he will meet with senior Turkish officials to discuss a range of bilateral and global issues, including the crisis in Syria and regional peace and security," said State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland in a statement, late on Thursday. On April 7-9, Secretary Kerry will travel to Israel where he will meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and in Ramallah to meet with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. Nuland noted that these meetings "are to follow-up on last month's discussions as "we continue to assess how best we can support the parties in getting back to the table and in having dialogue leading to peace." "We remain committed to working with the parties to achieve a lasting peace through direct negotiations," he added. Kerry will proceed to London on April 10 for the G8 Foreign Ministers meeting where he will meet with his counterparts "to discuss a range of country-specific, regional, and transnational topics". Kerry will lastly start his anticipated Asian tour where he will stop in South Korea, China, and Japan from April 12-15 to meet with his counterparts. "He will discuss a range of bilateral and multilateral issues, reaffirming the Administration's commitment to further broaden and enhance U.S. economic, security, and strategic interests in the Asia-Pacific region. The Secretary will arrive in Seoul on April 12, continue on to Beijing on April 13, and travel to Tokyo on April 14," concluded Nuland.