South Korea's defense chief says a camera made by a Japanese firm has been found in the wreckage of a North Korean spy satellite whose launch failed in May.

Shin Won-sik briefed a parliamentary defense committee on Thursday on developments related to North Korea.

Shin said the camera, made by a Japanese precision equipment maker, was found among the wreckage of the failed spy satellite that was raised from the sea.

This suggests that Pyongyang is diverting foreign-made civilian items for use in developing military satellites.

The defense chief said the same type of camera may have been installed on a spy satellite that Pyongyang said it successfully launched last month.

A sanctions panel of the UN Security Council has pointed out that North Korea is diverting civilian items procured from abroad for military use, circumventing international sanctions.