South Korea to fly home workers detained in U.S. immigration raid
South Korea will dispatch a chartered Korean Air flight to Atlanta this week to repatriate hundreds of its nationals detained in a large-scale U.S. immigration raid, officials confirmed Tuesday.
The operation, the largest single-site enforcement action in the history of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, targeted a $4.3 billion Hyundai Motor and LG Energy Solution battery plant in Georgia. Around 300 South Koreans were arrested, alongside 175 workers from other countries, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.
President Lee Jae Myung said Seoul would seek a “reasonable resolution” with Washington, stressing the importance of handling the matter in the spirit of the bilateral alliance. Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, currently in Washington, is pressing for assurances that deported Koreans will be allowed to return under improved visa arrangements.
A Korean Air Boeing 747-8i with 368 seats is scheduled to depart from Incheon as early as Wednesday.
The raid has sparked widespread anger in South Korea, with nearly 60% of respondents in a Realmeter poll calling U.S. actions “excessive.” Korean businesses have long complained about restrictive U.S. visa rules for skilled workers, which they say hampers factory construction and training efforts.
Some of the detained workers are believed to have overstayed the 90-day visa waiver program or entered on B-1 business visas not intended for employment. Calls are now growing for a special work permit system for Korean professionals to avoid similar crises in the future.
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