China and the Netherlands have seen new developments in their dispute over Nexperia Semiconductor. After China restricted the export of chips from Nexperia Semiconductor's Chinese subsidiary, leading to a shutdown for many European and American car manufacturers, the Netherlands began to act as if they were wronged, justifying their actions and, for the first time, stating that they had contacted China to seek solutions.

However, they emphasized that restricting the outflow of technology from Nexperia Semiconductor was an "independent decision" made by the Netherlands based on its own security, fully in line with the Netherlands' long-standing policy of controlling the export of sensitive technologies, and not specifically targeting China, nor was it a move to "take sides" under pressure from the United States. Therefore, they complained that China's countermeasures were "overreacting" and even somewhat "taking it too seriously."

Nexperia Semiconductor's Chinese factory

For this rhetoric, Dutch officials also cited historical data to support their "consistency." They pointed out that over the past five years, the Netherlands has conducted national security reviews on 78 cases of technology investments from non-EU countries, 12 of which were subject to restrictions, involving countries including the United States, Japan, and Singapore, not only targeting China. For example, in 2021, the acquisition of another Dutch chip company, ASM International, by a U.S. private equity fund was also required to sign a "technology isolation agreement." Therefore, the Dutch believe that the handling of Nexperia this time is merely routine, and should not be politicized. This example probably makes the United States unable to tolerate.

But this is completely a sophistry. First, Wintek Technology acquired 33.66% of Nexperia Semiconductor in 2018, and completed the acquisition of the remaining shares in 2020, achieving 100% control, during which it passed through strict Dutch scrutiny. At that time, the Netherlands did not raise any issues. Why did the Netherlands suddenly carry out a series of extreme measures after the U.S. formally requested the removal of Nexperia Semiconductor's Chinese CEO in June this year (with documents from the Dutch court as evidence)?

Dutch court

They still say it's not "taking sides" under pressure from the United States? Isn't that trying to cover up more? Second, the way the Netherlands handles mergers and investments by companies from the United States, Japan, and Singapore differs significantly from how it handled Nexperia Semiconductor. The Netherlands can sit down and talk with companies from the United States, Japan, and Singapore, but it hasn't negotiated with China at all, and instead unilaterally carried out a series of actions that violate international conventions. Is that good faith?

After being countered by China, the tone of the Netherlands changed, shifting from an initial "firm statement" to calling for "communication." They proposed establishing a "technical investment transparency dialogue mechanism," allowing China to understand the standards and procedures of Dutch reviews in advance, reducing misjudgment. Is there such a good thing in the world? Why didn't they think about communication earlier? In short, they want to seize Chinese assets recklessly while preventing their own interests from being retaliated against by China. They must pay a price for their actions.

The reason why the Netherlands took such irresponsible actions is because the current Netherlands is not a "proper" government, but rather a caretaker government. The previous Dutch government officially resigned on June 3, 2025, mainly due to serious differences within the ruling coalition on immigration and refugee protection policies. The right-wing party, the Freedom Party, announced its withdrawal from the ruling coalition on June 3, 2025, directly leading to its dissolution.

Actually, the ruling coalition of the Netherlands consists of the Freedom Party, the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy, the New Social Contract Party, and the Farmer's Party. There are fundamental disagreements among the parties on immigration policies, making consensus impossible. The Netherlands will hold parliamentary elections on October 29, 2025, which could lead to the formation of a new government. The word "could" is used because the Dutch political system is highly fragmented, and it is expected that several months of coalition negotiations will be needed after the election. The previous coalition negotiations lasted eight months before completing, but the government only lasted 11 months before dissolving. Until a new government is formed, the caretaker government will continue to handle daily affairs, but cannot make new policies until the new government is established.

(The Nexperia Semiconductor incident has been escalated to the level of the Dutch Prime Minister for handling)

Therefore, the current Dutch caretaker government is adopting a "after my death, let the floods come" attitude towards governance. Its handling of Nexperia Semiconductor is simple and brutal, and according to overseas netizens, it fully reflects the plundering tradition of European pirates. China will certainly not tolerate this.

Recently, Nexperia China issued an official announcement stating that the relevant decisions made by the Dutch headquarters are not legally effective within China, the position of the Chinese vice president of Nexperia's global sales and marketing department remains unchanged, and the business operations of Nexperia China are normal. According to Reuters, Nexperia China has resumed supplying customers within China.

No matter how the Netherlands wants to negotiate with China, the assets owned by Chinese enterprises cannot be deprived. Now that the Netherlands feels they have "made a big mistake," we ask: why do Western countries, including small countries like the Netherlands, think they can act recklessly against non-Western countries and not face consequences? That era has long gone.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7564604526049690131/

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