ICE arrests at a Georgia Hyundai plant create new tension with South Korea

""We are deeply concerned and feel a heavy sense of responsibility over the arrests of our nationals," Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said at an emergency meeting in Seoul, according to the national Yonhap News Agency. He said South Korean President Lee Jae Myung called for all-out efforts to swiftly resolve the matter, Yonhap reported, "stressing that the rights and interests of South Korean nationals and the business operations of South Korean companies investing in the United States must not be infringed upon.""

"ICE released video of what officials say is the largest single-site enforcement operation in the history of the Homeland Security Investigations. It shows officers shackling workers and loading them onto Georgia prison buses. "This operation underscores our commitment to protecting jobs for Georgians and Americans," said Steven Schrank, special agent in charge of homeland security investigations for Georgia and Alabama, during a news conference announcing the operation. "We are sending a clear and unequivocal message that those who exploit our workforce, undermine our economy and violate federal laws will be held accountable." He said it was not an operation where agents simply rounded up people and put them on buses, but the result of a months-long investigation. The workers, Schrank said, were either illegally present in the U.S. or working unlawfully."

South Korea's foreign minister is considering a trip to the United States after hundreds of South Korean nationals were arrested in Georgia at an electric vehicle battery plant. Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said he is deeply concerned and feels a heavy sense of responsibility. President Lee Jae Myung called for swift efforts and stressed that the rights and business operations of South Korean nationals and companies investing in the United States must not be infringed. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested 475 people, most of them South Korean, at a Hyundai-LG plant under construction in Ellabell, Ga. ICE released video showing officers shackling workers and loading them onto Georgia prison buses, and officials said the operation followed a months-long investigation into illegal presence or unlawful work.

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