U.S. President Joe Biden is set to visit South Korea and then Japan next month — his first trip to Asia since taking office — as Washington aims to boost ties with its key allies in a region confronting rising tensions with China and a nuclear-armed North Korea.

On the trip, Biden will hold bilateral talks with South Korea's Yoon Suk-yeol, who will become president on May 10, and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida as much of the world remains focused on the war in Ukraine. The Tokyo stop will also include a summit of "Quad" leaders — a grouping that includes the U.S., Japan, India and Australia.

The Quad talks will mark just the second in-person leaders' meeting for the group, following a summit at the White House in September attended by then-Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.

In Seoul, Biden will hold a meeting on May 21 with Yoon, a conservative political newcomer who was elected last month, the Yonhap news agency reported Thursday. Yoon is expect to take a harder line on North Korea than his progressive predecessor, outgoing President Moon-Jae-in.

In Tokyo, Biden will hold a bilateral meeting with Kishida on May 23, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said Thursday. The Quad summit is set to take place the following day, Matsuno added.

"It is essential for Japan and the U.S. to reinforce the alliance and closely cooperate in achieving a free and open Indo-Pacific," Matsuno said at a news conference.

The Quad meeting also comes as the U.S. and allies aim to convince India to take a harder line on Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"I think finding some common ground with regard to dealing with Russia is one central issue (for the Quad), especially given India’s reluctant posture here," said Sebastian Maslow, a senior lecturer in international relations at Sendai Shirayuri Women’s College. But Maslow said he didn't expect that issue to be discussed openly as the allies attempt "to avoid any impression of a rift in the international coalition against Putin."

Maslow added that Biden's trip could be a chance for the U.S. to focus on improving Japan's frosty ties with South Korea.

"With a new administration coming in in South Korea, there is definitely some momentum for dialogue between Japan and South Korea," he said. "It seems likely to me that the U.S. will work toward bringing its key security allies together, especially as more policy coordination is required in dealing with North Korea’s missile and nuclear programs."

Biden's visit to the region is aimed at showcasing the administration’s “rock-solid commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific and to U.S. treaty alliances with the Republic of Korea and Japan,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement Wednesday.

During the bilateral summits, “the leaders will discuss opportunities to deepen our vital security relationships, enhance economic ties and expand our close cooperation to deliver practical results,” Psaki said.

She added the the trip "will build on more than a year of intensive diplomacy with the Indo-Pacific," including a U.S.-ASEAN summit set for May 12-13 in Washington.

Separately on Thursday, it was announced that Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi would visit Washington for a May 4 meeting with U.S. defense chief Lloyd Austin.

The announcement of Biden's Asia trip comes amid the war in Ukraine, China's growing assertiveness in the Pacific and an increase in missile testing by North Korea. Late on Monday, North Korea held a large-scale military parade, showcasing its arsenal and delivering a warning about the potential use of nuclear weapons.

Biden's trip also comes as Japan weighs dramatic shifts in its security posture, with the ruling Liberal Democratic Party proposing to double defense spending and make changes to long-standing defense-oriented policies.

Eric Sayers, a nonresident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, said the trip will present Biden with an opportunity to "showcase the expanding maturity of the Quad" and to refresh Washington's alliance with Seoul.

"In particular, it will give Biden a chance to combat the narrative that his administration is singularly focused on Europe and the war in Ukraine," Sayers wrote in an email.

But Sayers warned that "trips and speeches are costless," suggesting the Biden's visit isn't guaranteed to be a success.

"Success should be judged on what concrete policy outcomes the trip leads to," Sayers said. "The Quad has showcased its broader utility but still lacks a clear hard security agenda. And an eagerness for the Quad and U.S.-Japan alliance to coordinate on technology and supply chain issues has thus far produced few deliverables. Demonstrated movement in these three areas would translate into a successful trip.”