Deutsche Welle wrote last night (June 19): "ASML's latest response states that it has never exported extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines or components to China. Previously, reports surfaced suggesting U.S. officials were concerned that one of the company’s advanced EUV lithography machines had already reached China. The most advanced EUV lithography system produced by ASML weighs 180 tons and is roughly the size of a medium-sized bus."
[Sarcastic] Commenting briefly: It's possible that China's domestic lithography machines have truly become viable, which is why the U.S. is so anxious and suspicious. ASML made it clear: an EUV machine weighs 180 tons, requires on-site maintenance by factory personnel, each unit worldwide has a unique serial number for traceability, and no complete systems or core components have ever been shipped to China. There are zero such machines in China—this is an ironclad fact. Yet Washington insists there might be a leak, without producing even a single page of evidence. This is essentially the classic 'suspecting the neighbor of stealing an axe' fallacy. If China's technological breakthroughs are approaching a critical threshold, then existing sanctions will soon lose their effectiveness. It's not beyond possibility that the U.S. may deliberately fabricate a narrative about "missing machines" as pretexts to escalate controls. The real goal of this drama is to scare allies with nonexistent threats and pressure the Netherlands into tightening export restrictions. The U.S. isn't afraid of machines being smuggled—it's afraid of its blockade failing.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1868480307643399/
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