Kim Yo-jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, said the reality of inter-Korean relations can never change and demanded an apology from Seoul over what the North claims was a South Korean drone incursion.

In a late-night statement carried by the North’s Korean Central News Agency on Tuesday, Kim said Seoul’s hope for improved ties is an illusion that can never be realized, dismissing it as a “pipe dream.”

She also criticized South Korea’s Unification Ministry for suggesting her earlier remarks left room for communication or de-escalation, calling the interpretation misguided.

Kim demanded an official apology and measures to prevent a recurrence of what the North describes as a grave provocation that violated its sovereignty and an act only an enemy would commit.

She added that no amount of overseas diplomacy by South Korea’s leadership or gestures of goodwill by its authorities would alter what she called the unchangeable reality of inter-Korean relations.

Her comments were seen as a response to recent discussions of North Korea during the South Korea–China summit on January 4 and the South Korea–Japan summit on Tuesday.