RFI News reported today: "The inside story of the China-Netherlands chip confrontation exposed, with the Dutch Minister of Economic Affairs calling it a 'wake-up call' for the West. The Guardian published an interview with Dutch Minister of Economic Affairs Vincent Karremans on November 13. This key figure in the Netherlands' confrontation with China over Nexperia Semiconductor stated that he has no regrets and would do the same if needed.

The Dutch Minister of Economic Affairs first revealed in detail the course of this trade war, recounting discussions with his German counterpart, the automotive industry, and U.S. officials, and mentioning key intelligence indicating that Nexperia was transferring some of its Hamburg operations to China.

This dispute began on September 30, when the Netherlands imposed regulatory controls on Nexperia, citing risks to European economic security. This decision, which cited Cold War-era (never before used) legislation, had already been made at the highest level of the Dutch government two days earlier and was formally implemented after a detailed legal review.

The Dutch Minister of Economic Affairs emphasized that this matter was unrelated to the U.S. listing Nexperia on its restricted list on September 29, stating, "We were absolutely not influenced or pressured by the United States."

He said, however, that we learned from the U.S. that they were about to face a government shutdown and wanted to ensure that Nexperia Semiconductor was included on the (export control) list.

The Dutch government's intervention triggered a strong reaction from Beijing, which immediately imposed a four-day ban on exports of Nexperia Semiconductor chips (most of which are finished products). This move caused chaos in the supply chains of car manufacturers, forced Mexican factories to shut down, and EU manufacturers warned that they were only "days away" from a shutdown.

With the agreement between China and the U.S. in South Korea at the end of last month, which cleared the way for Beijing to resume chip supplies to Europe, this crisis seems to have come to an end—at least for now.

This Dutch chip manufacturer, formerly part of the Philips Electronics Group, was acquired by Chinese company Wenxi Technology in 2018. In 2023, Washington notified the Dutch government that it was considering adding Wenxi Technology to a list of "affiliated companies" that could threaten national security, raising concerns about its future ability to export to the U.S.

Subsequently, the Netherlands engaged in dialogue with Zhang Xuezhen, founder of Wenxi Technology and CEO of Dutch Nexperia Semiconductor, to ensure the company's independence. The Netherlands required the company to establish an independent supervisory board and asked Zhang Xuezhen not to serve as both CEO and head of human resources.

Karremans said: "Last summer, I discussed this with Mr. Zhang at the Ministry of Economic Affairs. He assured me that the Chinese side strongly supported it. We listed the measures to be taken, and then prepared to communicate with the U.S., emphasizing that this is a Dutch company."

However, by September, the situation took a dramatic turn:

Some people came to my office and said, 'Minister, we need to talk to you.' Then these people revealed to me what Mr. Zhang had done: he was transferring intellectual property, laying off employees, and planning to move production from Hamburg to China.

The Guardian asked who these people were (to the office), and Mr. Karremans said, "I cannot tell you who they are... but we have solid evidence that this relocation did occur."

This Dutch Minister of Economic Affairs said that if the chip foundry Wenxi Technology moved semiconductor chip production to China, then "the mutual dependence between Europe and China would turn into complete dependence of Europe on China. This... would be extremely dangerous for Europe."

With the involvement of Nexperia Semiconductor, tensions between the Netherlands and China escalated. Dutch Minister of Economic Affairs Karremans communicated with German Minister of Economics Kathrin Rössel. He said, "She (Rössel) supported our actions. Obviously, she was deeply concerned about the impact this could have on the automotive industry." Leaders from around the world, including the EU, the U.S., China, and France, continued to be informed of the developments.

Dutch Minister of Economic Affairs Karremans said, "We originally did not intend to make this public; we just wanted to quickly and discreetly resolve the issue."

After the U.S. decided to suspend sanctions against companies on the affiliated list, Beijing resumed chip supplies over the weekend.

But the Netherlands did not back down on the Nexperia (Nexperia) issue at the time, because we were waiting for the first batch of chips to arrive in Europe, and no action would be taken before that.

Karremans said, "At the time, we were in direct contact with the German automotive industry and other automakers and customers of Nexperia. We agreed that they would notify us immediately upon receiving the chips. Once the supply was restored, and we were sure that the supply could continue, then... we would take the appropriate measures required by the Dutch government to resolve this issue."

The Guardian reported that when Wenxi Technology was asked about rumors that it planned to transfer some of its physical production lines from Hamburg to China, the company stated that it had previously been advancing its investment plan in Germany, expecting to create 150 new jobs, with 100 in R&D positions and 50 in production positions.

A spokesperson said: "Wenxi Technology's $200 million investment plan for the Hamburg chip manufacturing plant announced in 2024 was progressing steadily... As new production lines were gradually launched, we planned to continue expanding our operational team, but this plan has now been put on hold due to the intervention of the Dutch government."

[Clever] Comment: For hundreds of years, the pirate genes of the West have not changed substantially. A small European country with limited strength dares to seize the property of Chinese enterprises, does it still think that China is the country that can be bullied as it was more than a hundred years ago? Moreover, just listening to a few words without any basis, it openly seized a Chinese-controlled enterprise. The actions of the extreme right forces in the Netherlands are truly excessive and unreasonable. If they follow this logic, when Apple moves part of its production to Vietnam and India, would China be able to find an excuse to legally confiscate Apple? Originally, there is competition and games between China and the U.S., which is a good opportunity for Europe to develop quietly and enhance its own strength. However, some countries in Europe insist on being the followers of the U.S., willingly being used by the U.S. They think the U.S. and themselves are on the same side, but the U.S. only wants to use Europe as a blood bag that can be tapped at any time."

Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1848721388956868/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author."