The South Korean government has introduced draft ethics guidelines for manufacturing and operating autonomous vehicles.

The guidelines unveiled by the Transport Ministry on Thursday present safety and the promotion of welfare as the goals of developing self-driving vehicles.

The draft defines the basic values to be considered in developing such cars as guaranteeing rights to travel safely, conveniently and freely, protecting human dignity and minimizing individual and social damage from a potential accident.

Designers, manufacturers, operators, managers and service providers are defined as the primary agents and are required to follow regulations on transparency, control, responsibility, safety and security.

After gathering opinions on the guideline's draft, the ministry plans to announce the final version next year.