Printable Page Headline News   Return to Menu - Page 1 2 3 5 6 7 8 13
 
 
Dutch Leader Visiting Beijing for Talks03/27 06:13

   

   BEIJING (AP) -- Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte is meeting with Chinese 
leaders Wednesday for talks that are expected to include the wars in Ukraine 
and Gaza and Dutch restrictions on the export of semiconductor manufacturing 
equipment to China.

   The Netherlands imposed export licensing requirements in 2023 on the sale of 
machinery that can make advanced processor chips. The move came after the 
United States blocked Chinese access to advanced chips and the equipment to 
make them, citing security concerns, and urged its allies to follow suit.

   Rutte and Trade Minister Geoffrey van Leeuwen were to meet with China's top 
leader Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang, a Dutch government release said.

   Dutch company ASML is the world's only producer of machines that use extreme 
ultraviolet lithography to make advanced semiconductors. In 2023, China became 
ASML's second-largest market, accounting for 29% of its revenue as Chinese 
companies bought up equipment before the licensing requirement took effect.

   Beijing has repeatedly accused the U.S. of trying to hold back China's 
economic development by restricting access to technology. In response, Xi has 
launched a campaign to develop home-grown chips and other high-tech products.

   "China always opposes the U.S. overstretching the concept of national 
security and making various excuses to coerce other countries into imposing a 
technological blockade against China," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang 
Wenbin said in January.

   NATO and its growing ties with Asia also may come up at Wednesday's talks. 
Rutte is a leading candidate to be the next head of NATO, an organization that 
China has criticized for provoking regional tensions and making forays into the 
Asia-Pacific region.

   China has also taken a neutral position on the Ukraine war, providing Russia 
with diplomatic cover and economic support through trade. That stance has 
angered and frustrated much of Europe, which sees Russia as the aggressor and 
Ukraine as the victim.

   ASML, the Netherlands' largest company, recently threatened to leave the 
country over anti-immigration policies that may impact the company's ability to 
hire talent, leaving government officials scrambling to ensure that the firm 
does not leave.

   Van Leeuwen said this week in an interview with The FD, a Dutch business 
newspaper, that protecting the interests of ASML is a top priority but 
acknowledged that national security comes before economic interests.

 
 
Copyright DTN. All rights reserved. Disclaimer.
All of our posted bids are subject to change. Call for up to the minute bids.
Powered By DTN