Britain's Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab will visit four Asia-Pacific nations over the next few days to reinforce ties with countries outside the European Union.
The British Foreign Ministry said Raab will visit Australia, Japan, Singapore and Malaysia starting Thursday. It is the first time for a major British minister to visit abroad since the country left the EU on January 31.
Raab will arrive in Japan on Saturday from Australia.
He will meet with Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi.
Britain aims to achieve what it calls "Global Britain" with countries and territories outside the EU. It hopes to deepen historic ties and strengthen trade and economic relations through the visits.
Britain is apparently eager to secure a free trade deal, especially with Japan and Australia as soon as possible.
Raab also plans to exchange opinions with the four countries on global issues such as climate change as Britain will host the UN climate conference COP26 in November.
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