SEOUL, Jan 31, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol said

Wednesday that the North's "irrational" regime was likely to carry out
multiple provocations, including cyberattacks and drone intrusions, ahead of
the South's April election.

In recent weeks, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has declared Seoul his
country's "principal enemy", jettisoned agencies dedicated to reunification
and outreach, and threatened war over "even 0.001 mm" of territorial
infringement.

Kim has also ramped up weapons testing, including this week's launch of a
flurry of cruise missiles, which analysts said the North could be supplying
to Russia for use in Ukraine.

South Korea is gearing up for a crucial election on April 10, with hawkish
Yoon -- who came to office in 2022 vowing to get tough on Pyongyang -- and
his party aiming to regain a parliamentary majority for the first time since
2016.

"The North Korean regime is the only irrational group in the world that has
legislated the preemptive use of nuclear weapons," Yoon said during an annual
defence council meeting, which was attended by members of the public,
representatives of the country's police and spy agencies, and other
officials.

Yoon said that "multiple" provocations by the North were expected ahead of
the April general elections.

"This year, we are expecting multiple provocations for election intervention
such as border provocations, drone intrusions, fake news, cyberattacks and
rear disturbances," he said.

"Cyberattacks can paralyse national functions and people's daily lives in an
instant. Also, society can fall into great confusion due to fake news and
false propaganda," he added.

According to Seoul, Tokyo and Washington, Pyongyang has supported its banned
weapons programmes in part by gathering information through "malicious cyber
activities".

North Korea has a long track record of provocations ahead of South Korean
elections, experts say -- part of its broader strategy to cause disruption
south of the border.

In December, Seoul's spy agency issued a statement forecasting that Pyongyang
would carry out military and cyber provocations in 2024, targeting election
campaigns in the United States and South Korea.

North Korean leader Kim late last year instructed his aides to "come up with
measures to cause a big stir in South Korea early next year", the agency
said.