Mass arrest in Georgia sparks
Written : 2025-09-13 12:00:00 KST
[Weekly Focus] Mass arrest in Georgia sparks Korea–U.S. Visa reform push
More than 300 South Koreans arrested and detained following a raid at the Hyundai–LG battery plant in Georgia last week are now back home after tense negotiations. The episode is sparking new discussions about how to strengthen long-term Korea–U.S. visa cooperation. We have our correspondent, Oh Soo-young, in the studio with us. Sooyoung, let's go over what happened. It has been a dramatic week.
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Yes, it's been seven days of unbelievable events that started with shocking news and footage of over 300 South Koreans being rounded up by America's Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. With no prior warning, immigration authorities raided the Hyundai–LG battery plant, part of a multibillion-dollar Korean investment that marks the biggest economic development project in the history of Georgia. The images left many stunned as nationals from a key U.S. ally were forced to line up with their hands raised, then handcuffed and arrested.
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footage (특정한 사건을 담은) 장면[화면]
round up ~을 찾아 체포하다
Immigration and Customs Enforcement 이민 관세 사무소
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Days of negotiations took place with the key issue being whether they could leave under “voluntary departure,” avoiding deportation or trial. But uncertainty dragged on with conflicting signals from U.S. agencies. South Korea's Foreign Minister Cho Hyun traveled to Washington, D.C., to secure their release without penalties on their immigration records. Finally, on Thursday, a total of 316 South Koreans left the detention facility and arrived in Seoul on Friday, by chartered flight, seven days after they were taken into U.S. custody.
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drag on (너무 오랫동안) 질질 끌다[계속되다]
take into custody. ~ 을 수감하다
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Q2. Even their departure was dramatic, with a surprising twist. Yes, a chartered Korean Air flight was ready on Wednesday, but departure was delayed more than 24 hours. Seoul later confirmed it was due to none other than President Donald Trump himself. In an unexpected turnaround, Trump paused the departure process, asking for ways to allow the workers to remain in the U.S. as skilled professionals --and objecting to them being handcuffed.
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twist (이야기·상황의 예상 밖의) 전환[전개]
none other than 다름 아닌 바로 …인
turnaround (상황의) 호전(好轉), (의견·행동 등의) 180도 전환
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In light of global media reports and concerns over how the raid could compromise the 12.6 billion dollar South Korean investment in Georgia, the White House expressed appreciation for foreign investment into American manufacturing. Though emphasising the need to create American jobs,.. Trump also acknowledged that foreign specialists are critical in the early stages of major investments, underscoring the root of the issue and the need for a fundamental solution.
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In light of ~을 고려하여[감안하여]
compromise (특히 무분별한 행동으로) ~을 위태롭게 하다
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"You know, these are cutting-edge factories. They have proprietary technology, you know, these types of systems, these automation stacks don't necessarily exist anywhere else in the world. And so it makes sense for a company like Hyundai or SK or Samsung or these others when they are investing tens of billions of dollars state side that they want to bring in people because there aren't really anyone else there isn't really anyone else in the US that is skilled at.
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cutting-edge 최첨단
proprietary (제조 판매) 독점의, 전매(專賣)의
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Localization is always the goal, but there's currently a gap between a short-term work visa that allows these highly skilled technicians to come in support these large FDI projects, get them off the ground." Q3. So visas are at the heart of this. South Korea has no dedicated visa track for professionals. Exactly. In the case of other U.S. trade partners, Canada and Mexico enjoy unlimited non-immigrant professional visas under the North America FTA, Australia has 10,500 annual E-3 visas, and Singapore and Chile have secured thousands of short-term working visas through trade agreements.
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Localization 지방화
get off the ground 순조롭게 출발[시작]하다[하게 하다]
dedicated … 전용의
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Korea, on the other hand, has none. So while companies like Hyundai, LG, Samsung, and SK are investing billions stateside, they have challenging timelines for setting up appropriate facilities and staffing them with skilled workers. "The lack of short-term visa options for highly skilled workers from South Korea and other countries, I think, really limits the speed and rapidity in which the US can get foreign direct investment projects off the ground, particularly when we're talking about EVs or battery manufacturing."
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stateside 미국의, 미국 내의, 미국 쪽의(말하는 사람이 미국 국외에 있을 경우에 씀)
staffing 직원 채용
off the ground (일이) 진행중인
EV 특히 美 전기 자동차(electric vehicle)
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Without viable visa options, they were basically stuck, and that's what seems to have led to this incident --workers entering on short-term visas to help set up operations before ultimately leaving the U.S.. Subcontractors are particularly vulnerable, since many depend on a single client and must respond quickly to massive projects. "As far as we understand, a majority, if not all of the South Korean nationals apprehended in Georgia were not employed directly by Hyundai, but by one of their subcontractors They oftentimes, particularly in the South Korean automotive industry, have just a single supplier or a single client, a single customer.
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Subcontractor 하도급 업자[업체]
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And, so they are really put in a tough position where they need to respond extremely rapidly to these large, massive investments." Q4. President Lee Jae Myung called for a structural solution to this issue. Yes. Foreign Minister Cho Hyun has said he would try to turn this crisis into an opportunity to improve visa conditions for U.S.-bound firms and professionals. He's proposed a 'visa-related working group' with the U.S., which Washington appears to be on board with.
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Seoul's likely to push for new visa tracks that South Korean firms suggested when Minister Cho held a roundtable with representatives of Samsung, Hyundai, LG, POSCO, and SK this week. First, a new E-4 visa quota under the long-stalled “Partner with Korea Act,” which would allow up to 15,000 skilled Korean workers into the U.S. each year. The legislation was introduced in 2013, after the Korea-U.S. FTA took effect in 2011, but the act still hasn't passed through Congress.
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Korean firms would also like higher approval rates for the E-2 Treaty Investor visa for staff employed by Korean-invested plants in the U.S.. In the long run, experts say, administrative improvements are needed too for both Korean firms and different U.S agencies to provide clarity and coordination. "Ensuring that there is fidelity across all portions of that relationship, who the subcontractors are hiring, how they're bringing in these workers into the U.S., their legal status, what visas they applied for, how long they're here.
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fidelity 충실함, 신의[정절] (↔infidelity)
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Increased information sharing across all levels of a foreign direct investment project, I think, is going to be really key to making sure that something like this doesn't happen again in the future. 'And so ensuring that the different agencies across the federal government, State Department, ICE etc. are all coordinating and ensuring that there is a consistent message so that when a private sector Korean firm has a question about immigration, they get the same answer regardless of whether or not they're talking to the US Embassy in Seoul or Homeland Security here in DC."
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So beyond this immediate incident, both Seoul and Washington should aim to create frameworks for sustainable investment into the U.S.. Hopefully, that crisis has now ended in opportunity. Thanks for your report today Sooyoung
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영어 원문 출처 및 동영상 링크;
arirang news/Foreign Policy
https://m.arirang.com/news/view?id=287143
