3 h. ago US diplomat regrets raid, detention of Korean workers at Hyundai plant

A top US diplomat expressed regret on Sunday over an immigration raid in the state of Georgia that detained hundreds of South Korean workers and proposed making the event a turning point to strengthen bilateral relations, South Korea said. In a meeting in Seoul, First Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon-joo urged Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau to push forward bilateral discussions on follow-up measures, including a new visa category, the foreign ministry said in a statement. Some 300...

Politics

10 h. ago Politician slams ‘subordinate’ US ties, tells South Korea to build nuclear arms

Former Daegu mayor Hong Joon-pyo has described the recent arrests and detentions of South Korean workers in Georgia as an “intentional provocation” by the United States, calling for Seoul to consider its own nuclear weapons programme. “The Georgia incident occurred right after the Korea-US summit. It cannot be dismissed as anything other than an intentional provocation,” Hong wrote on his social media account on Saturday. “No matter how pro-China or pro-North Korea this administration may be,...

Politics

55 h. ago South Korean workers return home after Hyundai raid ordeal in US

Hundreds of South Korean workers arrived home on Friday after their detention in a US immigration raid that Hyundai warned would delay the completion of its battery factory. South Korean workers accounted for most of the 475 people arrested last week at the Hyundai-LG battery plant under construction in Georgia, prompting tense negotiations between Seoul and Washington, staunch security allies. A specially chartered Korean Air Boeing 747-8I carrying 316 South Koreans and 14 foreign employees...

Economics

55 h. ago ‘Is this how you treat an ally?’: South Koreans back home after US raid ordeal

A specially chartered flight carrying hundreds of South Korean workers detained in a US immigration raid last week landed at Incheon International Airport on Friday. South Korean workers accounted for most of the 475 people arrested at a Hyundai-LG battery factory site in the state of Georgia, triggering a delicate effort to resolve the thorny situation between close allies. The Korean Air Boeing 747-8I, with more than 310 South Koreans on board, departed from Atlanta and touched down on the...

Politics

3 d. ago For EU and China, Beijing parade was a missed chance to build bridges

The recent military parade in Beijing marking the 80th anniversary of victory against the Japanese invasion was a stunning display of precision and power. Rows of soldiers moved with robotic synchrony and new weapons systems – hypersonic missiles, stealth aircraft and autonomous drones – rolled past Tiananmen Square, signalling China’s arrival as a military peer to the United States. The presence of leaders from across the Global South, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean...

Politics

3 d. ago South Korea’s Lee calls US raid ‘bewildering’, says saga could hit investment

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung said on Thursday that a massive US immigration raid on a Hyundai-LG battery factory site could have a “significant impact” on future direct investment. The raid, which saw hundreds of South Korean workers chained and handcuffed, was “bewildering” he said, adding it “could have a significant impact on future investment decisions, particularly when evaluating the feasibility of direct operations in the US”. Last week’s raid at a Hyundai Motor project site in...

Events

3 d. ago South Korea’s Lee says ‘bewildering’ Hyundai raid could hit US investment

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung said on Thursday that a massive US immigration raid on a Hyundai-LG battery factory site was “bewildering” and could have a chilling effect on future investment. Seoul is expecting hundreds of workers detained during last week’s raid in the US state of Georgia to be released from detention on Thursday and flown back home. President Lee blamed the raid on “cultural differences”, saying that in South Korea, minor visa infractions by American nationals were not...

Events

3 d. ago South Koreans to leave US without handcuffs after arrest causes ‘great pain’

Hundreds of South Korean workers detained in a surprise raid in Georgia last week will be allowed to fly home on Thursday after the two countries’ top diplomats met in Washington and agreed to resolve a dispute that has roiled bilateral ties. President Donald Trump agreed to South Korean demands that the workers not be handcuffed, and the US will consider creating a new visa category to prevent future problems, according to Yonhap News. It said 330 people, almost all of them South Korean, will...

Events

3 d. ago Many caught in Hyundai raid appeared to be working legally, US lawyer says

A US immigration lawyer representing more than a dozen workers arrested at a Hyundai facility in Georgia last week said on Wednesday that many of the nearly 500 picked up appeared to be working legally, contradicting allegations by authorities. The lawyer, Atlanta-based Charles Kuck, said his clients included seven South Koreans who entered via the ESTA programme, for countries with visa-free travel to the US, or with B-1 visas for temporary business travel. He said they were legally allowed to...

Events

4 d. ago 10 South Korean soldiers injured in unexpected explosion during military drill

At least 10 soldiers were injured in an explosion during a live-fire simulation drill at a South Korean military base on Wednesday, the defence ministry in Seoul said. The explosion happened at a military base in the northern border city of Paju, the Ministry of Defence said in a statement, where an artillery unit was conducting a drill simulating live-fire procedures but without real ammunition. “At approximately 3.24pm on Wednesday, a mock training round designed to simulate artillery fire and...

Events

4 d. ago ‘I’m nervous’: fear grips South Koreans planning US trips after raid

Concerns are mounting among South Koreans planning trips to the United States amid fears that immigration authorities may tighten entry procedures after the recent detention of hundreds of South Korean workers in Georgia. Goo, a 33-year-old office worker preparing for a honeymoon in Hawaii next month, said he is worried his Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA) approval may be delayed or denied. “It used to come through in a day or two without problems, but this time I’m nervous it...

Politics

6 d. ago Trump warns foreign companies after South Koreans detained in huge US raid

US President Donald Trump on Sunday warned foreign companies to obey US law after immigration officials arrested some 475 individuals including South Korean workers at a Hyundai-LG battery plant being built in the southern state of Georgia. The arrests were made in a raid by US authorities on Thursday during the largest single-site operation implemented so far under Trump’s nationwide anti-migrant drive. “Please respect our Nation’s Immigration Laws,” the president posted on social media...

Events

8 d. ago ‘Deeply concerned’: South Korea vows to support citizens arrested in US raid

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung ordered all-out efforts on Saturday to respond to the arrests of hundreds of the nation’s citizens in a US immigration raid on a Hyundai Motor car battery factory. Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said the government had set up a team to respond to Thursday’s arrest of more than 300 Koreans at the facility in the southern state of Georgia, and that he could go to Washington to meet officials if needed. “I am deeply concerned. I feel heavy responsibility for the...

Events

9 d. ago Seoul expresses ‘concern’ over US immigration raid at Hyundai’s Georgia plant

South Korea on Friday expressed “concern and regret” over a major US immigration raid at a sprawling Georgia site where South Korean auto company Hyundai manufactures electric vehicles. South Korean Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lee Jaewoong described the number of detained South Koreans as “large”, though he did not provide an exact figure. His ministry would not confirm or deny South Korean media reports saying that about 300 South Koreans were detained in Georgia on Thursday. The Atlanta...

Politics

9 d. ago 2 Koreans and a Swiss national among 16 dead in Lisbon tram crash

Portuguese authorities were investigating on Thursday what caused a Lisbon funicular railway popular with tourists to hurtle down a hill, killing at least 16 people and injuring 22 when it crashed into a building. The Prosecutor General’s office said coroners had so far identified the bodies of five Portuguese, two South Koreans and one Swiss national, without disclosing further details of those killed. Portugal’s judicial police chief, Luis Neves, said there was a “high degree of certainty”...

Events

1 week ago North Korea's Kim and South Korean parliament speaker shake hands in Beijing

North Korea's Kim and South Korean parliament speaker shake hands in Beijing  Reuters

Politics

1 week ago As US adds more semiconductor hurdles, Chinese firms could seize an opportunity

China’s drive for economic self-reliance is raising the spirits and prospects of its semiconductor industry, as insiders expect more home-grown technologies after Washington revoked waivers for some foreign-owned chipmakers’ factories in China to use US technologies in their operations. The Chinese branches of South Korean chipmakers Samsung and SK Hynix, as well as Intel Semiconductor (Dalian), will lose their fast-track status for compliance as “validated end-users”, meaning they will need to...

Politics

1 week ago Tesla sees exodus of South Korean retail investors as crypto’s allure rises

South Korea’s retail investors are losing faith in Tesla’s stock, ramping up their selling last month amid growing disillusionment with the electric carmaker and rising interest in cryptocurrencies. Individual investors in South Korea sold a net US$657 million of Tesla stock in August, the largest outflow since at least early 2023, according to Bloomberg calculations of depository data. Investors have instead favoured even more volatile bets such as Bitmine Immersion Technologies, seen as a...

Economics

1 week ago South Korea’s Samsung, SK Hynix stocks sag after US revokes China chip permits

Shares of Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix slid on Monday after the Trump administration decided to make it harder for the world’s largest memory chipmakers to ship critical equipment to their giant Chinese operations. The surprise ruling deals a potential blow to their production in the world’s largest semiconductor market. While both South Korean companies have memory plants in their home market, China accounts for a major slice of their global output. Samsung sank more than 2 per cent, while...

Politics

2 w. ago North Korean leader irks South and US in alliance with China

North Korean leader irks South and US in alliance with China  The Korea Times

Politics