South Korea on Tuesday welcomed the election of Mohamed Morsi, the first Islamist to lead the country where a popular uprising last year ended a 30-year grip on power by Hosni Mubarak.

South Korea welcomes the "peaceful" and "democratic" election and congratulates Morsi of the Freedom and Justice Party, the foreign ministry here said in a statement.

"The (South Korean) government will continue to support the democratic process in Egypt," the ministry said, adding it will strive to strengthen bilateral ties.

Morsi, a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, won 51.73 percent of the vote, defeating Mubarak's last Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq.