SEOUL, July 22 (Yonhap) -- Vietnam has expressed regrets over the recent cremation of a South Korean resident without consent from his family after he died following COVID-19 infection, the foreign ministry said Thursday.

The Korean man in his 50s tested positive for COVID-19 in Ho Chi Minh City early this month and died while being treated at a hospital. The Vietnamese authorities cremated him without notifying his family or Seoul's diplomatic mission, apparently in line with quarantine rules.

"Through a diplomatic channel, the Vietnamese side expressed regrets over having cremated the body of our national without notifying the bereaved family or our embassy and pledged to prevent a recurrence," Choi Young-sam, ministry spokesman, said during a regular press briefing.

The Ho Chi Minh City authorities and the head of the hospital in question sent letters of condolences and an apology, respectively, to the bereaved family Tuesday, the spokesman said.

The remains of the deceased citizen arrived by air and were delivered to his family Thursday.

Source: Yonhap News Agency