The provision of Samsung smartphones to North Korean Olympic athletes in Paris is subject to a possible violation of U.N. Security Council (UNSC) resolutions banning the North’s access to industrial equipment, Seoul officials said Thursday.

Samsung Electronics, an Olympic partner, has distributed the Olympic edition of its latest Galaxy Z Flip 6 smartphones to all athletes participating in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

Citing the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the Radio Free Asia, a U.S. media outlet, reported the National Olympic Committee of North Korea has received the Samsung smartphones for its athletes.

“The UNSC bans, under Article 7 of Resolution 2397, direct or indirect supply, sale or transfer to North Korea of all industrial machinery,” a foreign ministry official said. “Smartphones are considered prohibited items under this resolution.”

Resolution 2397, adopted in December 2017 in the wake of the North’s launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile, bans North Korea from procuring,
selling or moving machines, vehicles, and other metal items that can be diverted for military use.

North Korea is banned under multiple UNSC resolutions from obtaining technologies to develop its nuclear and missile programs.

The unification ministry in charge of inter-Korean affairs gave a similar response.

“But this is an issue to be ultimately answered by the IOC,” a ministry official told reporters on condition of anonymity.

In the PyeongChang Olympics in 2018, North Korea refused to receive Samsung smartphones as the organizer of the Winter Games offered to provide them under the condition that North Korean athletes return the phones before heading home.

Source : Yonhap News Agency