ISTANBUL 

New Zealand has destroyed 3D-printed guns gifted by FBI Director Kash Patel to police and intelligence officers during his visit to the country in July. 

The replica guns were destroyed as they could be made operable with modifications, Radio New Zealand (RNZ) reported Tuesday. 

Police Commissioner Richard Chambers said in a statement that the Firearms Safety Authority was consulted about the guns. After the authority determined that the replicas could be made operable with modifications, Chambers ordered their destruction to comply with firearms laws.

New Zealand Security Intelligence Service Director-General Andrew Hampton and Government Communications Security Bureau Director-General Andrew Clark were also gifted the inoperable 3D-printed replica guns.

According to a spokesperson, the pistols were then handed over to the police and destroyed.

Patel had met with officials and spy bosses during his visit. Topics of discussion included regional security, transnational organized crime, counter-terrorism, cybersecurity, and espionage.

Patel had also announced the opening of a new dedicated attache office in the capital Wellington, saying that New Zealand and the US worked together on "some of the most important global issues of our times," including "countering the CCP (Chinese Communist Party)" in the Asia-Pacific region.

However, New Zealand dismissed suggestions that the FBI office in Wellington aimed to counter China.