North Korea has been ignoring calls to put an end to its threatening rhetoric, fueling fears of World War 3 among the international community.
And Mr Kazianis warned leader Kim Jong-un could exploit the Winter Olympics to showcase his military arsenal in front of the world – despite offering an olive branch to neighbouring South Korea.
He said: “Of course, the South Koreans are going to try and make the best of it but I guarantee the North Koreans are going to use this for propaganda advantage.
“They are going to test an ICBM, or nuclear weapon, or try to hack these Olympics. They are not going to do nothing. They are going to do something.”
In his New Year’s address, Kim Jong-un suggested North Korea would allow athletes from the rogue nation to participate in the Olympics in Pyeongchang.
Mr Kazianis said South Korea would be keen to take Pyongyang up on the offer due to the investment Seoul firms had put in the games.
Speaking to Fox Business, Director of Defense Studies at the Center for the National Interest said: “The South Koreans are in a bad position. They’ve put billions of dollars into the Olympics.
“Even American firms and other have put billions of dollars into this. This is a no-win situation for everybody.”
Kim Jong-un revealed that North Korea was willing to open talks with South Korea and could send a team to the Winter Olympics in February.
He said: “North Korea’s participation in the Winter Games will be a good opportunity to showcase the national pride and we wish the Games will be a success. Officials from the two Koreas may urgently meet to discuss the possibility.”
However the despotic leader also made it clear that North Korea would not give up its nuclear and missile programmes, adding that a “nuclear button” is always placed on his desk in a veiled threat against the US and its allies.
South Korea said it welcomed Kim Jong-un’s offer but experts fear the dictator’s latest announcement could be a move to drive a wedge between Seoul and the US – the two allied nations are set to hold military drills in the Korea Peninsula in February.
Evans Revere, a former senior US diplomat who took part in unofficial talks with North Korean officials last year, said Pyongyang would likely try to extract concessions as a “price” for Olympics participation.
However, he added: “It’s hard to imagine Seoul falling for this.”