Around 300 South Korean workers returned home on Friday, one week after being detained in a large-scale U.S. immigration raid at a battery project site in Georgia.
Workers wearing face masks began disembarking a chartered plane at Incheon airport and were greeted with cheers from officials including the presidential chief of staff.
Their return capped a week of intense negotiations by Seoul to win their release and bring them home after they were taken into custody in handcuffs and shackles - shocking many in South Korea, a key U.S. ally.
South Korean businesses have long struggled with obtaining proper visas for specialist workers needed at project sites for months at a time, which has led to some workers relying on grey areas in U.S. visa enforcement.
The two countries are looking at establishing a working group to consider a new type of visa for Koreans, according to South Korea's foreign minister who visited Washington this week.
The workers, also including 10 from China, three from Japan and an Indonesian national, were met by family members and officials at LG Energy Solution, and its subcontractors.
The battery company is partnering with Hyundai Motor to build the plant in Georgia.
The raid horrified South Koreans and has threatened to destabilise ties at a time when the countries are seeking to finalise a trade deal, which includes a $350 billion investment fund to support strategic U.S. industries.
In one sign of resentment, at the arrival gate, someone unfurled a poster depicting U.S. President Donald Trump wearing an outfit with the initials of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement service and carrying a bag full of dollar bills with a machine gun slung across his chest. The caption read: "We're friends!".
South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, who flew to Washington this week to seek a quick resolution, has called on U.S. officials to come up with a new visa for workers at Korean businesses investing in the United States.
President Lee Jae Myung warned on Thursday that the incident could make South Korean companies hesitant about investing in the U.S at a time when Trump has been seeking to encourage foreign investment in manufacturing.
Previously Trump had offered to allow them to stay in the United States, but only one has opted to remain, South Korean officials said on Thursday.
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UN Secretary-General António Guterres delivered a stark warning at this year's COP31 summit, saying the climate crisis iss advancing faster than governments' efforts to contain it.
European leaders gathered in Dublin on Thursday, 12 November, for the ninth European Political Community (EPC) summit, with security, defence and energy high on the agenda. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev held talks focused on peace, trade and regional cooperation.
Here's your AnewZ Daily Brief for 11 November. Today, we cover Russia-Ukraine peace talks, political tensions in Washington, strikes in Spain, espionage allegations involving Nvidia's CEO, and climate negotiations at COP31 in Türkiye.
Four million workers across Spain joined a general strike on Wednesday over the country’s deepening housing crisis, unions said, bringing disruption to factories, ports, shops and public transport just weeks before a snap general election.
Iran has unveiled a new underground missile and drone base, warning that it will respond forcefully to any attack, as tensions persist with the U.S. and oil tankers continue to be struck by naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz.
European leaders gathered in Dublin on Thursday, 12 November, for the ninth European Political Community (EPC) summit, with security, defence and energy high on the agenda. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev held talks focused on peace, trade and regional cooperation.
Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang is stepping down amid reports linking him to a woman suspected by U.S. authorities of spying for China, throwing the future of the $4 trillion chipmaker into uncertainty.
Tajikistan is urging regional allies to step up support for its border with Afghanistan following a series of deadly armed incidents. Despite building more than 80 new border outposts, Dushanbe says it needs further assistance to secure its southern frontier.
Eight people have been killed and at least 17 injured after an apartment building collapsed into a neighbouring construction site in Brooklyn, New York, as rescuers continued searching the rubble for possible survivors.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has thanked U.S. President Donald Trump for facilitating talks between Russia and Ukraine, but warned that any foreign troops deployed in Ukraine would be considered legitimate targets by Moscow.
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