President Donald Trump offered to allow hundreds of South Korean workers detained in an immigration raid to remain in the United States and help train American employees, but only one worker has chosen to stay, South Korean officials said on Thursday.
The president’s intervention led to a temporary delay of a chartered flight arranged to return the workers. The plane, initially scheduled to depart earlier in the week, was rescheduled to leave the US on Thursday.
Roughly 300 South Korean nationals were among those arrested last week, along with 175 others, at the site of the $4.3 billion Hyundai Motor and LG Energy Solution project in Georgia, where the companies are constructing an electric vehicle battery plant.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung told reporters that the repatriation process was paused while officials considered Trump’s proposal. According to a South Korean foreign ministry official, Trump instructed US officials to “encourage” the workers to remain in the country, suggesting they could stay to train or educate American workers.
However, South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, who met with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington, said the workers should return home first. “They can recover and then return if they wish,” the official noted.
The White House, the Department of State, and the Department of Homeland Security declined to comment on the matter.
Yonhap news agency reported that the workers would not be handcuffed when transported from detention to the airport, a departure from the usual practice of US immigration authorities, who often restrain immigrants during deportation transfers.
The raid has caused widespread concern in South Korea, raising doubts about the climate for Korean companies investing in the US. Business leaders have criticised strict American visa restrictions for skilled foreign workers, arguing the rules make it difficult to send experts quickly to oversee the complexities of building advanced manufacturing plants or to train US staff.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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