The European Union's antitrust regulator has conditionally approved Korean Air Lines' proposed merger with Asiana Airlines.

Korean Air said the European Commission(EC), the executive body of the EU, gave the conditional approval of the move on Tuesday.

The EC earlier raised concerns that the merger could restrict competition in the market for passenger and cargo air transport services, to which Korean Air presented a set of plans to address these concerns.

Accordingly, the EC approved the merger under certain conditions, including the selling of Asiana Airlines' cargo business and a provision of support to new entrants on certain routes. Korean Air needs to implement these measures before receiving the EU's final approval.

The airline has reported the planned merger to 14 countries and regions since January 2021 and has so far won approval from 13. It is currently awaiting approval from the U.S.