An immigration enforcement operation at a Hyundai-LG battery manufacturing facility in Georgia earlier this month has triggered diplomatic friction and raised concerns about the impact on foreign investment in the United States. Conducted on September 4, the raid led to nearly 500 initial detentions, including a significant number of workers from South Korea, a key U.S. ally whose companies have invested heavily in American infrastructure. n nThe affected plant, still under construction, is part of a major vehicle-related battery project. Hundreds of detained South Korean nationals returned home on Friday, marking one of the largest immigration enforcement actions in Department of Homeland Security history. Reports indicate that both authorized and unauthorized foreign workers were apprehended, prompting legal and diplomatic responses. n nHyundai clarified that none of the individuals arrested were direct employees of the company, emphasizing its commitment to ensuring compliance among suppliers and subcontractors. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump used his social media platform to express support for foreign investment and reassured international firms that their personnel would be welcome in the U.S. to oversee operations and train local workers. n n“I don’t want to frighten off or disincentivize Investment into America by outside Countries or Companies,” Trump posted, adding that the U.S. welcomes foreign expertise and aims to surpass it in the future. n nFollowing the raid—initially targeting four Latino employees, according to a warrant reviewed by The Independent—there were discussions about allowing some detained Korean workers to remain temporarily to assist in workforce training. n nIn Seoul, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau met with South Korean officials and expressed regret over the incident. The South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that Landau proposed using the event as a catalyst for improving visa systems and strengthening bilateral ties. Officials urged the U.S. administration to establish a dedicated visa category to prevent similar disruptions. n nLandau also emphasized on X (formerly Twitter) that foreign investors and their staff are essential to job creation and economic growth in the U.S., particularly as Korean firms prepare to make substantial new investments in sectors like shipbuilding. n nThe incident has complicated efforts to deepen U.S.-South Korea economic cooperation, especially after a July agreement in which the U.S. agreed to reduce tariffs in exchange for $350 billion in planned Korean investments. n nWithin South Korea, the raid has caused alarm among business leaders. President Lee Jae Myung warned that companies may hesitate to build factories in the U.S. without reliable visa processes for technical personnel. Chief of Staff Kang Hoon Sik described the current environment as a “new normal,” where ongoing negotiations are required not just on trade but also on security and labor mobility. n n— news from The Independent
— News Original —nHow Trump’s Hyundai immigration raid could blow up his economic agenda n nAn immigration raid at a sprawling Hyundai-LG plant in Georgia earlier this month could have major ramifications for the Trump administration’s ability to attract foreign investment in the United States, a major plank of the White House economic agenda. n nThe September 4 operation led to nearly 500 initial arrests, including hundreds of workers from South Korea, a major U.S. ally from which multiple marquee firms had invested billions into the vehicle-related battery facility, which is still partially under construction. n nHundreds of Korean workers caught in the sting, the largest of its kind in Department of Homeland Security history, returned to their home country Friday. n nNonetheless, efforts appear ongoing both domestically and overseas to contain the fallout from the operation, which immigration attorneys said netted arrests of both legal and illegal foreign workers. n nHyundai, meanwhile, has said none of those arrested were directly employed by the company and plans to ensure all suppliers and subcontractors working at the plant are complying of their legal obligations. n nOn Truth Social, Donald Trump offered a rare endorsement of immigration and sought to assure foreign companies they can still send workers to the United States to supervise investments and train Americans on new ventures. n n“I don’t want to frighten off or disincentivize Investment into America by outside Countries or Companies,” the president wrote Sunday. n n“We welcome them, we welcome their employees, and we are willing to proudly say we will learn from them, and do even better than them at their own ‘game,’ sometime into the not too distant future!” he added. n nFollowing the raid, which was originally launched to seek the arrests of four Latino workers at the plant, according to a warrant seen by The Independent, the president reportedly floated the possibility the detained Korean workers could temporarily stay in the country and train American workers. n nIn Seoul, meanwhile, South Korean diplomats said Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau met with officials and expressed regrets over the arrests. n n“Deputy Secretary Landau expressed deep regret over the incident and proposed using it as a turning point to improve the system and strengthen the South Korea-U.S. relationship,” the South Korean foreign ministry said in a statement, adding that officials pressed the Trump administration to create a new visa category to avoid such incidents. n n“[T]he United States welcomes and encourages foreign investment in our country and therefore logically welcomes and encourages the personnel necessary to get those investments up and running,” Landau wrote on X on Sunday. “These are the kind of visitors we want, who are CREATING American jobs and prosperity right here at home. Korean companies are poised to make MASSIVE new investments in our country (in shipbuilding among other industries), and—as I emphasized to our Korean friends—we in the @StateDept will ensure that they have the necessary and proper visas to comply with our laws.” n nThe Independent has requested contact from the White House. n nThe sight of immigration agents chasing Koreans through a U.S. factory has cut against attempts to foster further U.S.-South Korean economic ties as part of a July deal for the Trump administration to lower the president’s tariff rates on the country in exchange for $350 billion in Korean investments in the U.S. n nWithin South Korea, the operation proved especially alarming. n nSouth Korean President Lee Jae Myung warned Thursday that some companies fear “establishing a local factory in the United States will either come with severe disadvantages or become very difficult for our companies” unless the United States can promptly issue reliably enforced visas to foreign technicians. n n“We are in an age of new normal in dealing with the United States,” South Korean presidential chief of staff Kang Hoon Sik told reporters Friday at the airport in Incheon when the detained workers were arriving. n n“The standard changes every time and constantly there has to be deal-making, not only on tariffs, but it’ll also be the case with security issues,” he said.