SEOUL, Sept 19 — South Korea’s Foreign Minister Cho Hyun has assured the nation that the government will take decisive steps to address ongoing U.S. visa challenges for Korean workers before proceeding with a massive US$350 billion investment package under a bilateral trade agreement with the United States.
The announcement comes on the heels of a deeply unsettling U.S. immigration raid that led to the arrest of hundreds of South Korean workers at a Hyundai Motor battery facility in Georgia. While most of the affected individuals have since returned home, the incident has exposed critical gaps in visa policy and sparked urgent calls for a new visa category that would allow skilled Korean professionals to seamlessly assist in the setup of U.S. manufacturing facilities and train local American employees.
Cho emphasized during a press briefing in Seoul that visa reform, while crucial, is not a precondition for Korea’s strategic investment in the U.S., particularly in sectors vital to both nations’ economic futures.
“I want to be clear — we’re committed to our international responsibilities and partnerships. But we also have a duty to protect the dignity and rights of our citizens working abroad,” said Cho.
On a broader diplomatic front, Cho also noted that Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to attend the upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) leaders’ summit hosted by South Korea in late October. After a recent diplomatic visit to Beijing, where he met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Cho said he expressed South Korea’s openness to expanding cultural cooperation with China — an effort to ease the long-standing cultural import restrictions on Korean content like K-pop, which have been in place since the deployment of the U.S.-led THAAD missile defense system in South Korea.
The controversy around THAAD and its powerful radar, which Beijing claims could intrude into its airspace, has continued to be a thorn in diplomatic ties between Seoul and Beijing for years.
