The President of South Korea, after the arrests of over 300 citizens at the US Hyundai Megafabrica: we will mobilize all resources. The head of diplomacy wants to go to Washington
Hyundai. Photo: © TKTKTK | Dreamstime.com
South Korea President Lee Jae Myung, ordered the mobilization of all resources on Saturday to respond quickly after the arrest of hundreds of South Korean citizens in a ray of American immigration authorities at a Hyundai car battery factory, according to Reuters.
The Foreign Minister Cho Hyun announced that the government was a special team to manage the situation, after over 300 South Koreans were arrested on Thursday at the Georgia unit. He added that he could go to Washington for discussions with American officials if necessary.
“I am deeply worried. I feel a great responsibility for arresting our citizens,” Cho said at an emergency meeting of the Government.
The incident risks amplifying tensions between the Trump and Seoul administration, an ally and key investor of the United States in Asia. The two parties had divergences on the details of a commercial agreement that includes South Korean investments in the US worth $ 350 billion.
Construction work at the US Hyundai Megafabrica stopped after hundreds of workers were detained in a RAID
About 475 workers workers from a Hyundai Motor factory in the US state of Georgia were detained in a wide descent of the American authorities, which led to the suspension of the project to build a battery factory for electric cars.
A video broadcast by the US immigration and customs service (ICE) shows Asian workers handcuffed, middle and ankles climbing in a bus after razie, an operation attended by a helicopter and armored vehicles.
The arrest of approximately 475 workers, of which over 300 South Koreans, at the factory near Savannah, within the increasingly harsh campaign of President Donald Trump, was the largest law enforcement operation ever carried out by the US Internal Security Department in a single location.
In the video, hundreds of workers were lined up in front of a building, some wearing yellow vests inscribed with names such as “Hyundai” and “LG CNS”. Two of the workers hid in a pond before being arrested.
“We welcome all the companies that want to invest in the United States and, if they need to bring workers for construction or other projects, it is fine-but they have to do it legal,” Steven N. Schrank, a special responsible agent of Homeland Security Investigations for Georgia and Alabama, said on Saturday. “This operation sends a clear message: those who operate the system and undermine our workforce will be held accountable.”
Hyundai has announced that it will investigate suppliers and subcontractors to ensure that they comply with regulations.
LG Energy Solution, which collaborates with Hyundai in the construction of the factory, said that he called his employees back from US business and suspended travel to the United States, except customer meetings. According to the company, 47 of its employees and approximately 250 workers of contractors on the yard of the common factory were detained.
Photo: © TKTKTK | Dreamstime.com
