President expresses concerns over 'unjust' detention of Koreans in US immigration raid

President Lee Jae Myung said Tuesday that he felt a deep responsibility for the detention of hundreds of Korean workers in a U.S. immigration raid, emphasizing that the activities of those contributing to Seoul-Washington cooperation should not be obstructed unfairly.

"I feel a deep responsibility as the president who bears the full responsibility for the safety of the people," Lee said during a Cabinet meeting, referring to those held by U.S. immigration authorities.

"We must ensure that the activities of our citizens and companies in advancing the Korea-U.S. alliance are not hindered unjustly," he said, pledging to work closely with Washington to prevent further incidents and to seek reasonable improvements in U.S. visa rules.

Lee also ordered relevant ministries to closely manage the situation until all the Korean detainees return home safely.

President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the presidential office in Yongsan District, Seoul, Tuesday. Joint Press Corps

The president's remarks came as a chartered Korean Air flight was set to depart for Atlanta at 11 a.m. Wednesday to bring home the detained Korean nationals.

More than 300 Koreans are being held at a detention center in Folkston, Georgia, following a massive raid on Thursday (local time) at an electric vehicle battery plant construction site near Savannah operated by a joint venture between Hyundai Motor Group and LG Energy Solution.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in cooperation with the Korean companies involved, is arranging the chartered flight, with the companies covering the cost.

Industry officials said plans for a Korean Air Boeing 747-8i flight from Incheon International Airport to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport are finalized, with details still being coordinated with the government.

The foreign ministry said the plane will depart the U.S. on Wednesday (local time) to head for Korea, but it did not specify how many passengers will be on board.

"We are still confirming the intentions of each individual on returning home. The final tally of passengers will be determined later," a ministry official said on condition of anonymity.

Korean authorities are also coordinating transportation from the Folkston detention center to Hartsfield-Jackson airport.

A task force led by Cho Ki-joong, consul general at the Korean Embassy in Washington, has been meeting with the detained workers, most of whom say they wish to return home.

The ministry said the Koreans would leave the United States through “voluntary departure,” a process that allows immigration detainees to leave on their own volition and often spares them a formal deportation order. But some legal experts noted that such departures can amount to a tacit admission of wrongdoing and could jeopardize the workers’ chances of reentering the country in the future.

U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem said Monday that most of the detained Koreans were being "deported" for ignoring prior removal orders.

Seoul's foreign ministry declined to comment on Noem's description of the departures as deportations, saying the operation is proceeding under the framework of “voluntary departure.”

Foreign Minister Cho Hyun speaks to reporters at Incheon International Airport, Monday, as he departs to Washington for negotiations with U.S. officials on finalizing the return of the detained Korean workers in Georgia. Yonhap

Amid these developments, Foreign Minister Cho Hyun arrived in Washington on Monday night (local time) to negotiate with U.S. officials on finalizing the return of the detained workers.

He is expected to meet with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and request measures to minimize any disadvantages for the soon-to-be released Koreans who may seek reentry to the U.S. in the future.

Cho may also raise concerns about the shortage of work visas for Koreans, which has been cited as a root cause of the unprecedented immigration raid.

Most of the detained workers had entered the U.S. on short-term business visas or through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA), which is typically used for brief visits. Korean companies seeking to send supervisors to factory construction sites must apply for H-1B visas, which are capped at 85,000 per year worldwide and allocated by lottery.