North Korea late Thursday began opening its borders to outside support following a complete lockdown amid the ongoing threat from the spread of the coronavirus.

Doctors Without Borders confirms to U.S. News a shipment of medical supplies has arrived at a North Korean border crossing at the Chinese city of Dandong. Authorities in Pyongyang have agreed to facilitate their transfer into the country, which continues to impose widespread domestic and international travel restrictions.

International aid groups largely rely on the government of China, a historic ally of North Korea's, to deliver support into the hermit kingdom. The latest news comes days after the Russian government was able to deliver medical supplies into North Korea on the return leg of a North Korean flight to Vladivostok that evacuated diplomats and other foreigners who had been quarantined in Pyongyang.

North Korea had been a troubling blind spot in the international effort to contain the spread of the coronavirus, which causes a disease known as COVID-19. Neighboring South Korea has documented more than 7,000 cases and China has reported almost 5,000 deaths as a result of the disease, yet it's still unknown whether there have been any cases in North Korea amid Pyongyang's crackdown.

Outside support for a country as isolated as North Korea – both due to its own policies and international sanctions – is notoriously complex but has become even more so as the Trump administration has increased its diplomatic and economic pressure campaign against Kim Jong Un's regime.

That approach shifted in a way that surprised many international aid workers who spoke on the condition of anonymity to U.S. News. The State Department issued a statement in support of international aid shipments to North Korea last month, and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo issued a rare tweet in support of efforts to help Pyongyang on Feb. 13.

"The U.S. is deeply concerned about the vulnerability of the North Korean people to a #coronavirus outbreak. We strongly support and encourage the work of U.S. and international aid and health organizations to counter and contain the spread of coronavirus in the #DPRK," he wrote, referring to the country's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

U.S. officials since then have helped expedite requests for exemptions from a U.N. committee overseeing international sanctions that would otherwise limit shipments into North Korea. Doctors Without Borders received such an exemption earlier this month but hasn't until this week been able to get through Chinese restrictions on international travel and shipping.

Despite their optimism some aid workers still express concern about the process, particularly at a time of international crisis.