Foreign minister Park Jin expressed condolences for the death of Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Sabah last week on behalf of the South Korean government while in the Middle Eastern country.

According to Seoul's foreign ministry on Tuesday, Park relayed Seoul’s sympathies to Kuwait's new Emir, Sheikh Meshal al-Ahmad al-Sabah while attending a memorial service on Monday.

In the meeting with the new emir, the minister also conveyed President Yoon Suk Yeol's resolve to take bilateral relations further.

The emir pledged efforts to ensure that two-way ties continue to develop firmly in accordance with his predecessor's wishes.

Park and Kuwaiti foreign minister Sheikh Salem Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah also held talks on expanding cooperation in housing, health care, food and the defense industry ahead of the 45th anniversary of the start of the two sides' diplomatic relations next year.