New York, Sep 15 (DPA) UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has selected a group of highly qualified people to monitor sanctions imposed by the UN Security Council on North Korea, a US official said Monday.

The group will become functional in the coming weeks to begin the difficult work of overseeing the implementation of UN sanctions, US Ambassador Susan Rice told reporters.

The names of the group have not been made public, Rice said.

The sanctions range from a ban on exports of nuclear technology and weapons to Pyongyang to a freeze of assets and a travel ban on some North Koreans involved in their country's nuclear activities. The sanctions were imposed in June after North Korea detonated its second nuclear device and fired a series of missiles.

The United Arab Emirates last month seized a ship allegedly transporting weapons from North Korea to Iran. The UAE informed a council's sanctions panel of the seizure. The panel has demanded more information from Pyongyang and the deadline for a reply expired last week.