NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg speaks at the Congress Centre during the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos, Jan. 18. AFP-Yonhap

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg will visit Korea early next week on a regional swing that will also take him to Japan, Seoul's foreign ministry said Monday.

Stoltenberg is scheduled to make a two-day trip to Seoul from Sunday, during which he will have meetings with top South Korean government officials, including Foreign Minister Park Jin and Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup, according to the foreign ministry.

Stoltenberg is also due to visit the Seoul National Cemetery and participate in a forum hosted by a South Korean think tank.

His trip to Seoul comes as the government of President Yoon Suk Yeol has been stepping up cooperation with NATO. Yoon attended a NATO summit in June last year, becoming the first South Korea leader to have taken part in the summit.

Following his Seoul trip, Stoltenberg will fly to Japan for a two-day trip. (Yonhap)