The recent immigration raid at a Hyundai battery plant in Georgia, resulting in the detention of over 300 South Korean workers, has ignited a diplomatic crisis between Seoul and Washington. South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, speaking 100 days into his term, directly linked the incident to a potential slowdown in South Korean investment in the United States. He emphasized the urgent need for the US to reform its visa system to accommodate the skilled workers crucial for launching and maintaining South Korean manufacturing facilities.
The incident, which saw images of workers being chained and transported, caused widespread outrage in South Korea. The raid occurred shortly after a summit between President Lee and Donald Trump, and only weeks after South Korea pledged $350 billion in US investments – a deal made against a backdrop of domestic job losses in South Korea. This has fueled accusations of a betrayal of trust and led to criticism of the US government's heavy-handed approach from both sides of the South Korean political spectrum.
While US authorities claimed some workers had illegally crossed the border, others had expired visas or entered on waivers prohibiting employment, South Korean officials expressed frustration at the lack of action on a longstanding request for a visa system catering to skilled workers. South Korean companies have traditionally relied on short-term visas, a practice tolerated until this raid.
President Lee highlighted the contrasting approaches to immigration, noting that South Korea readily accepts foreign workers on tourist visas for various roles, while the US employs a far stricter approach to immigration and enforcement. He stressed the potential impact on future US investments: "If the United States doesn’t issue visas allowing our skilled technicians to work on projects, establishing factories here becomes severely disadvantageous, or even impossible." He also added that this might force South Korean companies to reconsider investing in the United States.
Following discussions between South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, both countries have agreed to form a joint working group to explore new visa categories that would ease the process for South Korean companies to send personnel to the US. However, uncertainty remains about the number of South Korean workers in the US who could be vulnerable to future crackdowns without significant changes to US visa policy. Experts warn that without these changes, delays in projects and economic harm will inevitably affect both South Korea and the United States, as the current situation creates an untenable climate for future investment.
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Originally published at: https://apnews.com/article/south-korea-visa-us-trump-investments-immigration-raid-25f04d539eb2556f3ff2fad49db0f74e
