Samsung phones for NK Olympians may violate UN sanctions, Seoul says
Bronze medalist Lim Jong-hoon of South Korea takes a selfie with Shin Yu-bin of South Korea, gold medalists Chuqin Wang and Yingsha Sun of China and silver medalists Ri Jong-sik and Kim Kum-yong of North Korea, on the podium with their medals at South Paris Arena 4, Paris, France, July 30. Reuters-Yonhap
Experts fear controversy could taint Olympic spiritBy Kwak Yeon-sooThe South Korean government warned, Thursday, that North Korean Olympians receiving Samsung Electronics' smartphones could be violating U.N. Security Council (UNSC) resolutions concerning Pyongyang's nuclear weapons and missile programs.
The issue began with reports that Samsung, an Olympic Partner sponsor since the 1998 Nagano Winter Games, handed out special “Olympic edition” Galaxy Z Flip 6 smartphones to competing athletes this year.
Radio Free Asia, a Washington-based media outlet, reported citing the International Olympic Committee (IOC) that North Korea received Samsung smartphones for its athletes.
The Ministry of Unification said smartphones are classified as prohibited goods under UNSC Resolution 2397, adopted on December 22, 2017. The ministry noted that these devices can be used for both commercial and military purposes.
“North Korean Olympic athletes receiving Samsung smartphones may violate UNSC Resolution 2397 that directly and indirectly prohibits the supply, sale and transfer of all electrical equipment to North Korea” a unification ministry official said. “The act of giving, or providing, Samsung phones could also be seen as a violation of U.N. sanctions. The IOC has the final say on this issue.”
The IOC was not immediately available for comment.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also gave a similar response. “The government will continue to make necessary diplomatic efforts in cooperation with the international community to ensure the thorough implementation of UNSC resolutions,” a foreign ministry official said.
Images of Olympic table tennis players from North Korea and South Korea taking a selfie together on the medal podium in Paris went viral in South Korea last week and was hailed as a rare show of cross-border unity.
Earlier on Monday, Rep. Park Choong-kwon, a North Korean defector-turned-lawmaker of the ruling People Power Party, claimed that the reclusive regime may confiscate all smartphones provided to North Korean Olympic athletes.
“It’s possible that North Korean authorities confiscated all their phones before opening the box,” Park said on a radio show.
At the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games, North Korea declined to accept Samsung smartphones after the organizers offered to provide them on the condition that North Korean athletes return the phones before departing.
Bronze medalist Kim Mi-rae of North Korea, right, hands a Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 to silver medalist Chen Yuxi of China, left, on the podium after the women's 10-meter platform diving final during the Olympic Games in Saint-Denis, France, Tuesday. Yonhap
Experts advised South Korea to adopt a cautious approach to avoid causing any friction with the IOC, as the Olympics are intended to convey a message of peace.
“I think it’s quite regrettable that the government and media are trying to make a fuss over a smartphone. The IOC follows its own manual on how to deal with sanctions and disputes on political matters. Lodging a diplomatic protest can be seen as a huge insult for the IOC,” Hong Min, a senior research fellow at the Korea Institute for National Unification, said.
“Unless the North Korean delegation refuses to receive Samsung smartphones, the IOC or Paris 2024 Organizing Committee won’t likely request them to return their phones before they go back to their home country.”
Park Won-gon, a professor of North Korean studies at Ewha Womans University, said the North's Olympic athletes receiving Samsung phones violates not only U.N. sanctions but also U.S. sanctions.
“It makes more sense for the U.S. to raise a question, but I doubt it will because it’s not a big deal. The purpose of sanctions is to prevent human rights violations, the proliferation of nuclear weapons and adversely affect North Korea’s economy, but smartphones are not necessarily linked to serve such purposes,” he said.
Park added that Samsung smartphones are unlikely to work on North Korean networks.
“North Korean authorities will likely confiscate the athletes’ phones in order to limit access to overseas news programs about North Korea and prevent them from spreading outside information,” he said.