Gov. Brian Kemp’s upcoming trip to the Republic of Korea was planned “well before” the federal immigration raid on Georgia’s Hyundai electric vehicle battery plant west of Savannah, his office said, indicating the two are unrelated.

“Governor Kemp and First Lady Marty Kemp will travel to Japan and the Republic of Korea this fall on a mission focused on strengthening economic ties with two key partners,” Kemp’s office said Sunday. “This travel, as with any economic development mission, was scheduled well before the events of Sept. 4, with the logistics required to organize such a mission taking months to finalize.”

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security executed a search warrant after investigating allegations of unlawful employment practices at the battery plant, detaining 475 workers Sept. 4.

The action provoked complaints from the Republic of Korea, a major economic partner with Georgia.

Kemp will visit the country for a third time as governor, during his trip to next month’s Southeast U.S./Japan Association (SEUS-Japan) Joint Meeting in Japan.

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