South Korea is preparing to dispatch a chartered aircraft as early as Wednesday to repatriate hundreds of its nationals detained in a sweeping U.S. immigration raid, officials confirmed.
Last Thursday, U.S. immigration authorities arrested 475 people—including hundreds of South Koreans—at a Hyundai-LG battery plant under construction in the southern state of Georgia.
American officials described the operation as the largest single-site raid carried out under then-President Donald Trump’s nationwide crackdown on illegal labor.
Seoul has labeled the mass detention a “grave situation.” Foreign Minister Park Jin departed for Washington on Monday to press for the workers’ swift release, vowing to ensure their safe return.
Korean Air, the country’s flag carrier, told AFP it plans to send a Boeing 747-8i to Atlanta once U.S. administrative procedures are completed. “That is our goal for now,” a company spokeswoman said Tuesday.
The workers were employed at a $4.3 billion joint venture project between Hyundai and LG Energy Solution to build a massive battery cell manufacturing facility in Georgia.
LG confirmed that 47 of its direct employees were arrested—46 South Koreans and one Indonesian—while an estimated 250 others worked for its contractors. Hyundai said none of its own employees were among those detained.
Immigration experts suggest many of the South Korean workers were on visas that did not legally permit them to perform hands-on construction work.
Trump defended the crackdown in a weekend social media post, warning foreign companies to abide by U.S. law: “Your investments are welcome, and we encourage you to LEGALLY bring your very smart people.”
The episode underscores the delicate balance between Washington’s demand for foreign investment and its increasingly hardline immigration policies.
South Korea, Asia’s fourth-largest economy and a key U.S. ally, has invested heavily in American manufacturing, particularly in the automotive and electronics sectors.
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