US Vice President Kamala Harris is set to conclude her term with a global trip spanning Singapore, Bahrain and Germany, according to the Associated Press. The journey, scheduled to run from January 13 to 17, offers Harris a final opportunity to address a number of key foreign policy challenges before Donald Trump assumes office on January 20.

While Harris has yet to reveal any detailed plans following the loss of the presidential election in November, her travel itinerary does hint at a continued interest in engaging on the global stage. Speculation also surrounds a potential bid for the governorship of her home state, California.

During the trip, Harris intends to visit US troops stationed in each of the countries on her itinerary. In Singapore this will involve a stop at Changi Naval Base where she will also meet with leaders of the city-state, highlighting its strategic importance in the Indo-Pacific region, particularly concerning China and freedom of navigation in the South China Sea (SCS).

China’s increasingly overbearing moves in the region have marred US foreign policy efforts in Asia in the last two years as Beijing pushes to increase its sphere of influence in the geopolitically all-important ocean lanes of the SCS.

In Bahrain, Harris will then visit the headquarters of the US 5th Fleet, before moving on to Spangdahlem Air Base in Germany, home to US Air Force fighters

It is believed that in Germany Harris will emphasise Nato’s role in deterring Russian aggression, which has remained a pressing issue since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine nearly three years ago.