South Korea has asked the United Nations to exempt a blacklisted North Korean official from its sanctions so that he can visit the South for the Winter Olympics as part of a high-ranking North Korean delegation.

Choe Hwi, the chairman of the North's National Sports Guidance Committee, is included in sanctions adopted by the United Nations Security Council(UNSC) in June last year, which bans those blacklisted from travelling.

The South Korean mission to the UN on Wednesday submitted a formal request to the UNSC Sanctions Committee on North Korea, asking for a temporary suspension or exemption for Choe's trip to the South.

The exemption requires approval from all of the 15 members of the sanctions committee.

According to a report from the Associated Press the UN committee granted Choe the exemption on Wednesday "following due consideration."

North Korea had informed Seoul that it would send a high-level delegation to the games, including North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's sister Kim Yo-jong, Choe Hwi and Ri Son-gwon, the head of the North's state agency in charge of inter-Korean affairs.