President Donald Trump on Sunday sought to reassure international partners, saying foreign workers coming to the United States are “welcome” and that he does not want to “frighten off” investors. His remarks came just 10 days after U.S. authorities arrested hundreds of South Korean nationals at a Georgia worksite. Writing on his Truth Social platform, the 79-year-old Republican emphasized: “I don’t want to frighten off or disincentivize investment.”
The controversy began on September 4, when Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents raided the construction site of an electric vehicle battery plant operated by Hyundai-LG in Georgia. A total of 475 workers, mostly South Koreans, were arrested for allegedly overstaying visas or working under permits that did not allow manual labor.
The Georgia raid marked the largest single-site immigration operation since Trump launched his latest nationwide crackdown. Although U.S. authorities decided against deporting the workers, scenes of them handcuffed and chained sparked outrage in South Korea. Eventually, Seoul organized the repatriation of the workers on Friday. Reacting to the incident, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung called the raid “bewildering” and cautioned last week that such actions could discourage future investment in the U.S.
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