People watch a TV screen showing the live broadcast of South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s press conference at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, Sept. 11, 2025. The sight of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents handcuffing and chaining the wrists, waists and ankles of skilled technicians shocked South Koreans. Because the U.S. gives South Korea no visa quota for skilled workers, South Korean technicians have been traveling to the U.S. on short-term visas as a workaround. But Jang Sang-sik notes that South Korea also has plenty of reasons to tone down its criticism of the U.S. raid on its factory. “There’s countering the threats from China and North Korea, and the possible withdrawal of U.S. forces” from South Korea.