South Korea aims to resolve US visa issues before executing $450 billion investment

SEOUL – South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said on Sept 19 that the government will work to address problems faced by South Korean workers with US visas before proceeding with a US$350 billion (S$450 billion) investment package that is part of a bilateral trade deal.

His remarks come after a recent US immigration raid resulted in the

arrests of hundreds of South Korean workers at a Hyundai Motor battery plant

in the state of Georgia.

Most of the workers

returned to South Korea last week

, but the incident prompted calls from companies for a new visa category to make it easier for skilled South Korean workers to help set up new factories and train US workers.

Still, the visa policy was not “a precondition” to make the US investments in strategic US industries, Mr Cho said at a press conference in Seoul on Sept 19.

Mr Cho said he expected Chinese President Xi Jinping to attend a leaders’ summit at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) forum, which will be hosted by South Korea in late October.

The Foreign Minister, who returned from a trip to Beijing for talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi this week, said he relayed a message on South Korea’s willingness to discuss cultural cooperation with China at the Apec meetings.

China has maintained restrictions on importing South Korean entertainment content, such as K-pop, for nearly a decade to protest against the installation of a US-led missile shield in South Korea.

Beijing has contended that the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defence system’s powerful radar could peer into its airspace, straining ties between the countries. REUTERS