Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Saturday met with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during a visit to the secretive country and Moscow’s ally.

Lavrov “was received” by Kim Jong Un, Russia’s foreign ministry said on Telegram, posting a video of two men shaking hands and greeting with a hug.

Russian and North Korean state media announced the visit earlier, saying Lavrov would stay until Sunday.

It is the latest in a series of high-profile trips by top Moscow officials as both countries deepen military and political ties over Russia’s offensive in Ukraine.

Pyongyang sent thousands of troops to Russia’s Kursk region to oust Kyiv’s forces and provided the Russian army with artillery shells and missiles.

Lavrov said that North Korean officials had “reaffirmed their full support for all objectives” of the offensive in Ukraine, according to a Russian state agency Tass.

He also thanked the “heroic” North Korean soldiers, the Russian foreign ministry said.

North Korea only confirmed it had deployed troops to support Russia in April.

Since then, Kim has been shown in state media paying tribute in front of flag-draped coffins of North Korean soldiers killed helping Russia fight Ukraine.

Russia’s security chief Sergei Shoigu visited Pyongyang multiple times this year.

The two heavily sanctioned nations signed a military deal last year, including a mutual defense clause, during a rare visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin to North Korea.

Warning to US, SK, Japan

Earlier on Saturday, Lavrov met with his North Korean counterpart Choe Son Hui in Wonsan, a city on the country’s east coast where a massive resort was opened earlier this month.

After the meeting with Choe, Lavrov accused the U.S., South Korea and Japan of what he called their military buildups around North Korea.

“We warn against exploiting these ties to build alliances directed against anyone, including North Korea and, of course, Russia,” he told reporters, according to Russia’s state Tass news agency.

The U.S., South Korea and Japan have been expanding or restoring their trilateral military exercises in response to North Korea’s advancing nuclear program.

On Friday, the three countries held a joint air drill involving U.S. nuclear-capable bombers near the Korean Peninsula, as their top military officers met in Seoul and urged North Korea to cease all unlawful activities that threaten regional security.

North Korea views major U.S.-led military drills as invasion rehearsals. It has long argued that it’s forced to develop nuclear weapons to defend itself from U.S. military threats.

Lavrov said Russia understands North Korea’s decision to seek nuclear weapons.

“The technologies used by North Korea are the result of the work of its own scientists. We respect North Korea’s aspirations and understand the reasons why it is pursuing a nuclear development,” Lavrov said.

During their meeting, Choe reiterated that North Korea “unconditionally” supports Russia’s fight against Ukraine. She described ties between North Korea and Russia as “the invincible alliance.”

Lavrov said he repeated Russia’s gratitude for the contribution that North Korean troops made in efforts to repel a Ukrainian incursion into Russia’s Kursk border region.

Wonsan city, the meeting venue, is where North Korea recently opened a mammoth beach resort that it says can accommodate nearly 20,000 people.

In his comments at the start of his meeting with Choe, Lavrov said that “I am sure that Russian tourists will be increasingly eager to come here. We will do everything we can to facilitate this, creating conditions for this, including air travel,” according to the Russian Foreign Ministry.

The Wonsan-Kalma tourist zone is at the center of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s push to boost tourism as a way to improve his country’s troubled economy. But prospects for the biggest tourist complex in North Korea aren’t clear, as the country appears unlikely to fully reopen its borders and embrace Western tourists anytime soon.