Late on Wednesday night, Vietnam is expected to roll out the red carpet for Vladimir Putin, who will arrive fresh from his trip to North Korea.

The visit will be seen as especially important for the Russian leader, as Vietnam, unlike North Korea, has built up careful alliances with the West over past decades.

“Russia wants to send the message that it has friends everywhere in the world and that the West’s effort to isolate Russia is futile,” Alexander Vuving of the Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies said.

The US has already condemned Hanoi’s decision to host Putin.