One of Russia’s most powerful men, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, is set to visit North Korea this weekend, in a sign of deepening relations between Moscow and Pyongyang as North Korea gets pulled deeper into Russia’s war in Ukraine.

As Western countries consolidated around support for Ukraine, Russia and North Korea are positioning themselves as challengers to the West.

It was reported last week that North Korea plans to triple the number of troops fighting with Russia along the front lines in Ukraine—sending an additional 25,000-30,000 troops. Troops will arrive in the next few months, adding to the 11,000 North Korean troops that were sent in November.