Report: Dennis Rodman's going back to North Korea

Dennis Rodman is returning to North Korea.

After the NBA Hall of Famer was spotted at Beijing International Airport, two North Korean officials confirmed to CNN that Rodman is expected to arrive in Pyongyang at some point Tuesday.

The purpose of his trip is unknown, and the North Korean officials declined to provide any details. The U.S. State Department told CNN it was aware of Rodman's trip, but said he was not going in any official capacity.

Rodman has visited the country several times, and has described its leader, Kim Jong Un, as a "good-hearted kid." His most recent visit came in 2014, when he played an exhibition basketball game with members of the Harlem Globetrotters as a birthday gift for Kim.

The U.S. and North Korea are locked in a tense standoff that both sides have warned could lead to nuclear war. Since 2006, North Korea has conducted five known nuclear tests and countless ballistic missile tests as it advances toward its long-held goal of developing a nuclear warhead that can reach the U.S. mainland.