BEIJING, July 12 (Reuters) - John Kerry, U.S. special envoy on climate issues, will visit China from July 16-19, China's Ministry of Ecology and Environment said on Wednesday, the latest senior U.S. official to travel to Beijing in recent weeks.

Kerry's trip follows a visit by State Secretary Antony Blinken last month and will come a week after the departure of Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.

Given the scale of their economies, cooperation between the U.S. and China is considered vital to international efforts to avert the worst impacts of climate change. While in Beijing, Yellen stressed that both countries need to work closely together on the issue.

Climate experts have said they do not expect Kerry's trip to add much momentum to climate negotiations, given ongoing political tensions between China and the United States.