SEOUL-- President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol expressed hope for an early conclusion of free trade agreement negotiations with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) on Friday as he met with the top envoys from its member states.

Yoon met with the ambassadors and acting ambassadors of Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Bahrain, which also belongs to the six-member council, was not represented, as it does not have a permanent mission in Seoul.

"I hope free trade agreement negotiations between South Korea and the GCC will conclude at an early date and provide a framework for increased cooperation between the two sides," he said at the transition team's office.

The negotiations resumed this week after a 13-year hiatus.

Yoon's spokesperson Kim Eun-hye said the president-elect promised to expand cooperation with the GCC states in new and renewable energy, defense, agriculture, health, culture and education.

"After taking office on May 10, I plan to further boost high-level exchanges with the GCC states from the start of my term," he was quoted as saying.

The GCC supplies 68 percent of South Korea's crude oil imports.

Yoon said he feels reassured by their countries' strong ties in the energy sector at a time of rising volatility in the global energy market, Kim said in a written briefing.

He also recalled South Korea's economy benefited greatly from doing business in the Middle East starting in the 1970s.

The ambassadors agreed cooperation between the two sides will continue to deepen and promised to work to increase people-to-people exchanges.

Source: Yonhap News Agency