KIM JAEWON and PAK YIU
September 11, 2025 12:16 JST
Updated on September 11, 2025 14:47 JST
SEOUL/NEW YORK -- Moon Young-ju could not contain his anger when he heard the news that over 300 South Koreans had been detained after U.S. immigration authorities last week raided a joint Hyundai Motor-LG Energy Solution battery factory under construction in the state of Georgia.
The 54-year-old former merchant protested in front of the U.S. Embassy in downtown Seoul on Wednesday with a yellow banner reading: "Yankees go home. Get out america army."
"I came here because I was so upset," Moon said after lighting a cigarette. "We invested as they demanded. We built factories as they demanded. It's our blood, sweat and tears."
Moon is not alone. South Korea's government faces widespread public outcry and calls to stand up to the U.S. over the treatment of its arrested citizens, some of whom were seen in footage being led away restrained by body chains, although the two sides have since agreed to send the detained workers home this week on a charter flight.
The raid came as U.S. President Donald Trump pushes ahead with a crackdown on illegal immigration even as he demands that countries like South Korea make massive investments to build state-of-the art production facilities in America -- part of his policy of "reshoring" manufacturing and reducing trade deficits.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said at a news conference on Thursday that the raid would likely make some companies from his country "hesitant” to carry out more large investments in the U.S. “Companies are quite taken aback. The fact is that they sent these workers to the U.S. not for the long term, but to set up machinery in a factory because there aren’t enough workers in the U.S. who know how to do that,” he said.
The raid and the accompanying national indignation have pushed Seoul to demand that Washington loosen visa rules for workers from abroad amid confusion about the status of the detained.
Lee expressed hope that authorities in the two nations could negotiate changes to visa regulations that would make it easier for South Korean firms to send workers to the U.S. for limited periods.
The government dispatched Foreign Minister Cho Hyun to Washington. The ministry said that he had a meeting with U.S. counterpart Marco Rubio on Wednesday, asking the secretary of state to set up a new visa category for South Korean workers.
He also told Rubio that South Koreans were "hurt and shocked" by the arrests of their compatriots, who came to the U.S. to contribute to the revival of the country's manufacturing industry.
After arriving on Tuesday, he hosted a meeting with executives from eight South Korean companies operating businesses in the U.S., including LG and Hyundai Motor.
Company executives asked the minister to bring up with the U.S. the potential launch of a separate visa under the E-4 category -- which currently covers certain classes of special immigrants -- for South Korean professionals, as well as increasing approvals of E-2 visas -- which cover professionals with advanced degrees and persons of exceptional ability -- for South Korean companies investing in America. They also asked the U.S. government to clarify guidelines for B-1 visas, a short-term business visa that employees of South Korean companies get when they make work trips to the country. Many of the detained South Korean workers held such a visa.
Cho told the businesspeople that their concerns had already been conveyed to Washington and pledged to continue making efforts to ensure the smooth operation of South Korean companies investing in the U.S.
Moon Young-ju stands next to his protest banner near the U.S. Embassy in Seoul on Sept. 10. (Photo by Kim Jaewon)
South Korean companies complain that there is only a limited quota of B-1 visas, meaning they cannot get them when they need them.
"Sometimes we need to send our employees immediately," said an industry source familiar with the issue, who also requested anonymity. "It's not easy to set up a plan a year in advance. Many Korean companies raised this issue before. I'm very sorry that [the raid] happened before the problem was resolved."
The incident has rattled Asian investors who have set up factories in the U.S. and highlights some of the labor difficulties foreign companies face. Companies are now wondering how they can set up and build manufacturing in the U.S. if they don't have support from the authorities, said Don Southerton, a business consultant who works with South Korean companies such as Hyundai.
He anticipates some projects will slow down, and this will send ripples through America's battery market. Southerton says the incident underscores the urgency of visa revisions that would allow expat engineers to work more effectively and streamline projects that will foster American manufacturing. Currently, he said, the visa system "allows them to teach how to use a screwdriver but doesn't actually allow them to use a screwdriver. How can you show them how it's done without actually demonstrating?"
On Monday, South Korea's foreign minister said that resolving the visa issue is a precondition for the country to deliver the$150 billion in investments promised during a summit between the two allies last month.
"At the previous summit, there was a request for ... [South] Korea's large-scale investment, and we also responded to it. To achieve it, I would stress to the U.S. side that this visa issue is a precondition," Cho told lawmakers before his trip to the U.S. capital.
In a post on Truth Social on Sunday, Trump said foreign companies were encouraged to legally bring "your very smart people, with great technical talent, to build World Class products." He added, "We will make it quickly and legally possible for you to do so. What we ask in return is that you hire and train American Workers."
Analysts said that South Korea needs to use its investment package as leverage to pressure the Trump administration into reaching an agreement on the issue.
"Because there are already pledges of large-scale investment, it should be possible to solve the visa quota issue within that framework," said Jung Jae-hwan, a professor of international politics and economy at Inha University in Incheon.
"Of course the U.S. could impose new conditions, such as a certain portion of local hires, but at least they should be able to mitigate the recurrence of this kind of detention case."
Additional reporting by Steven Borowiec.
South Korea seeks US visa rule changes after mass arrests spark outrage
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