South Korea and the United Arab Emirates(UAE) failed to strike a deal on allocating more commercial flight routes between the two countries.

Seoul's Transport Ministry said on Thursday that South Korean officials attending talks with the UAE in Abu Dhabi a day earlier declined to accept the latter's demand to double the current number of routes from Incheon to either Dubai or Abu Dhabi.

The Dubai-based air carrier Emirates currently operates seven flights a week on the Incheon-Dubai route. The UAE’s second-largest airline Etihad Airways operates the name number of flights a week on the Incheon-Abu Dhabi route.

South Korea's flagship carrier Korean Air also operates seven flights a week on the Incheon-Dubai route.

Local airlines such as Korean Air and Asiana Airlines have been voicing concerns that they will lose price competitiveness, as well as a large portion of passengers traveling to European cities, if South Korea accepts the UAE's demand.

The fares for Incheon-UAE routes operated by UAE airlines are up to 30 percent cheaper than those of Korean Air, as they are reportedly backed by government subsidies.