The Vice Foreign Minister urged the State Department to provide special cooperation, and the US stated,"We are in close communication with relevant agencies."

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Ji-yeon = First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Park Yoon-joo spoke with the U.S. Under Secretary of State on the 6th and expressed regret over the mass detention of Koreans at a Korean factory in Georgia.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a phone call made at the request of U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Allison Hooker, Vice Minister Park explained in detail the situation in which approximately 300 Koreans were detained by U.S. authorities in a crackdown on a joint battery factory between Hyundai Motor Group and LG Energy Solution, and requested the State Department's special cooperation.

Vice Minister Park also expressed regret that this incident occurred and the footage of our citizen's arrest was made public at a critical time when the momentum of trust and cooperation between the two leaders, established through the first summit meeting after the launch of the new governments in both countries, must be maintained.

It appears that the point was made that on the same day, photos and videos of the crackdown were posted on the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) website, and the scene of a worker, presumed to be Korean, being taken away was exposed as it was.

Vice Minister Park reiterated that the economic activities of Korean companies investing in the U.S. and the rights and interests of our citizens should not be unfairly infringed upon during the U.S. law enforcement process, and that the State Department should actively work to ensure a fair and swift resolution to the issue.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that Undersecretary of State Hooker said that the State Department is also closely monitoring the matter and is in close communication with relevant ministries.

He also said that he was particularly paying attention to the issues that arose in relation to Korea's investment activities in the United States, and that they would continue to consult closely in the future.

During the call, the two sides also discussed follow-up measures for the South Korea-U.S. summit and the schedule for high-level diplomatic talks between the two countries.

On the 4th (local time), U.S. immigration authorities conducted a large-scale crackdown on illegal immigrants at the construction site of the Hyundai Motor Group-LG Energy Solution joint battery plant (HL-GA Battery Company) in Savannah, Georgia, arresting and detaining 475 people, including about 300 Koreans.

The government is providing consular assistance by operating a field response team centered around local embassies, and is also working hard to devise countermeasures by holding a joint meeting of the Overseas Citizens Protection Headquarters and embassies, chaired by Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Hyun.