The Dutch government has announced its decision to restrict exports of the country’s most advanced semiconductor chip technology, following pressure from the United States. This marks the first time that details of the deal reached by the Netherlands and Japan with the US in January to limit sales of chip technology to China have been made public.
In a letter submitted to parliament on Wednesday, the Dutch trade minister outlined measures to limit the export of chip technology without providing specifics. However, the minister emphasized that the restriction would only apply to very high specification systems used to produce the smallest but most powerful chips, including the deep embedding lithography (DUV) tool manufactured by Dutch company ASML.
Companies that want to export this technology will have to apply for a license. The move is aimed at ensuring that China does not gain access to the most advanced chips, which can be used in weapons and important machines.
The US has been urging the Netherlands and Japan, which are key chip manufacturing technology manufacturers, to continue cutting China off from accessing advanced chips. The pressure comes as part of the ongoing tensions between the US and China over trade, technology, and other issues.
The restriction is expected to have a significant impact on the global semiconductor industry, given the dominance of ASML in the market for advanced chip-making machines. The company’s DUV tool is considered to be the most advanced in the world, and is widely used by chip manufacturers globally.
The Dutch government’s decision is likely to further exacerbate tensions between China and the West, as well as to fuel the ongoing tech war between the US and China. The international community will be watching closely to see how the situation unfolds, and how it will impact the semiconductor industry and global trade relations.