Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov has arrived in Caracas to meet Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro, the Interfax news agency quoted Borisov’s office as saying on Saturday.

Axar.az reports citing Reuters that Maduro and Russian President Vladimir Putin briefly discussed Caracas’ debt obligations to Russia during Madurov’s visit to Moscow last month, the Kremlin has said, without providing details.

Borisov oversees the Russian defense industrial sector in the government and is also a co-chairman of the Russian-Venezuelan intergovernmental commission.

Moscow has acted as a lender of last resort for Caracas, with the Russian government and oil giant Rosneft providing at least $17 billion in loans and credit lines since 2006.