North Korea said it will pursue unspecified “additional military options” in response to Japan’s expanding defense capabilities, accusing Tokyo of reviving the ambitions of a “war criminal state.”

Kim Yo Jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, said that Pyongyang would not remain a “passive onlooker” to what she described as Japan’s accelerating transformation into a military power, according to a statement published on Wednesday by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

“War criminal state Japan’s possession of the capability for preemptive attack is a grave threat destroying global peace and security,” Kim said, referring to Tokyo’s efforts to acquire long-range strike capabilities.