South Korea Will Bring Home Hyundai Illegal Workers

Roughly 300 South Korean workers who were arrested in a massive ICE raid at a plant in Georgia last week will be flown back home on a chartered flight after the Korean government struck a deal with the Trump administration on Sunday.

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s chief of staff revealed that the US and Seoul finalized an agreement on the release of the workers who were detained at a Hyundai battery plant site in Bryan County, Georgia last Thursday following a massive raid.

“Negotiations for the release of the detained workers have been concluded, after swift responses by the relevant ministries, business agencies, and companies,” South Korean Presidential Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik said in a statement.

“However, some administrative procedures remain, and once they’re completed, a chartered plane will depart to bring back our citizens.”

A total of 475 people were detained during the raid, at least 300 of whom are believed to be Korean nationals.

The Hyundai megaplant is still under construction and is part of a collaboration between the automaker and LG Energy Solution to produce batteries for electric vehicles.

LG Energy Solution claimed that many of its employees who had been detained during the raid had various visas or were operating under a visa waiver program.

US immigration officials dubbed the raid “the largest single site enforcement operation in the history of Homeland Security Investigations.” It’s part of the Trump administration’s massive immigration crackdown across the country — with officials mandating at least 3,000 arrests per day nationwide

The raid flared tensions between the US and South Korea, which have long been close allies. Lee pushed for “an all-out response” to the incident, and South Korea’s foreign ministry voiced “concern and regret” as well.

Border Czar Tom Homan vowed that the Trump administration will continue to conduct “a lot more” worksite enforcement operations going forward.

“Look, no one hires an illegal alien out of the goodness of their heart. They hire them because they work them harder, pay them less and undercut the competition that hires US citizen employees,” Homan told CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday.

“Yes. We’re going to do more worksite enforcement operations.”

Georgia state officials touted the plant as one of the largest economic development projects in the Peach State.

In July, South Korea had cut a tariff deal with the Trump administration, vowing to invest $350 billion in the US and buy some $100 billion worth of American energy in exchange for lower duties.

President Trump met with Lee in Washington, DC, late last month.

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement released footage on Saturday showing vehicles driving up to the megaplant and a swarm of federal agents lining up workers outside.

Footage showed some of the workers being shackled.

They were then mostly taken to a detention center in Folkston, Georgia, about two hours away from the megaplant.

ICE alleged that some of the workers had either entered the country illegally, had expired visas, or possessed visas that restricted them from working.

South Korea’s presidential chief of staff declared that Seoul will demand improved visa conditions for those traveling to the US.