As scattered details of the apparent suicide of Russia’s former transport minister Roman Starovoit trickled in via state media on Monday, one stood out. Near his body, the Kommersant newspaper reported,

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is set to visit North Korea over the weekend as Russia’s relationship with the United States sours. Russian Foreign Minister Maria Zakharova told reporters on Wednesday that Lavrov would be traveling to the country for a “second round of strategic dialogue at the level of foreign ministers.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will travel to North Korea later this week, according to the country’s official news agency KCNA. “Lavrov will pay a visit to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) between July 11 and 13,