North Korea has reportedly told the U.S. that signing a permanent peace treaty replacing the current armistice takes precedence over the normalization of relations with the U.S.

Quoting a source familiar with U.S.-North Korea ties, Japan’s Kyodo News said Monday that North Korea told U.S. special envoy Stephen Bosworth during his trip to the North earlier this month that diplomatic relations could worsen at any time.

According to the source, North Korea said that it is not interested in normalizing ties with the U.S. for the time being.

The North added that its priority is to establish a peace treaty that replaces the current armistice, which ended the Korean War in 1953.

North Korean officials have showed cautious reactions to Washington’s conditional but comprehensive approach to the North, which has included the offer to establish a liaison office in Pyongyang, economic aid proposals, and the normalization of diplomatic relations in return for the communist country’s denuclearization.

The North repeated its stance that it will not begin any denuclearization process unless the U.S. changes its so-called “hostile” attitude toward North Korea.

Bosworth met with high-level North Korean officials including Vice Foreign Minister Kang Suk-ju during his three-day visit to Pyongyang, which began on December eighth.