N. Korean Olympic athletes receiving Samsung smartphones could violate U.N. sanctions: Seoul

The unification ministry said Thursday North Korean Olympic athletes receiving Samsung Electronics Co.'s smartphones could be in violation of U.N. Security Council (UNSC) resolutions against Pyongyang's nuclear and missile programs. 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 unification ministry in charge of inter-Korean affairs said Resolution 2397, adopted in December 2017, bans the supply, sale and transfer of all electronic goods to North Korea. "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 o rganizer 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