Calling South Korea “a foreign country and an apparent hostile country,” North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has said North Korea will not hesitate to use force if the South violates its sovereignty.

The North’s state-run Korean Central News Agency(KCNA) said Friday that Kim made the remarks the previous day while inspecting the headquarters of the North Korean army’s Second Corps. 

Kim reportedly said the destruction of the two roads that linked the Koreas means “not only the physical closure but also the end of the evil relationship with Seoul which persistently lasted century after century.”

He also said the closure of the roads put an end to the “unreasonable idea of reunification” and the idea that South Koreans are “fellow countrymen.”

If the North uses force against the South, he added, it will constitute “legitimate retaliatory action against the hostile country,” not against compatriots.