US, Dutch and Japanese officials are close to a deal to limit China’s access to technology used to make computer chips, a Dutch semiconductor company confirmed on Sunday.
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ASML,
The semiconductor equipment maker in Veldhoven, the Netherlands, said it was possible a deal had already been reached but did not know much about the deal or how it would affect ASML’s business.
ASML is the only machine manufacturer in the world that uses ultraviolet lithography to produce advanced semiconductor chips. The Dutch government has banned ASML from exporting these devices to China since 2019, but the company still sent low-end machines to China.
Read: Despite the ban, China’s nuclear weapons lab has bought US chips for years
The Biden administration in October enacted export regulations to limit China’s ability to acquire advanced weapons, which it says could be used to manufacture weapons, violate human rights and improve the speed and accuracy of its weapons. It has encouraged allies such as Japan and the Netherlands to follow suit.
China has responded angrily, saying the trade restrictions will disrupt supply chains and the global economic recovery.
“We hope that the relevant countries will do the right thing and work together to coordinate the global trade system and protect the stability of the global industry,” Chinese Finance Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said this month. “This will also help protect their long-term interests.”
ASML has research and manufacturing facilities in Beijing and Shenzhen, China, as well as a regional headquarters in Hong Kong.
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said on Friday that Dutch and Japanese officials were in Washington for talks led by President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, who described the “security and safety of emerging technologies,” to try to help Ukraine etc. story.
“We’re excited to have them come to DC to visit,” Kirby said.
Kirby declined to say whether the U.S. is nearing a deal to strengthen export controls on semiconductor technology. Biden earlier this month met separately with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte to push for stricter export regulations.
At a press conference last week, Rutte was asked about the talks but said they included “difficult … high-tech issues that the Dutch government chooses to talk about carefully and that means very little.”
U.S. officials say China is spending more to develop its fledgling semiconductor manufacturers, but so far it can’t produce the high-end chips used in high-end phones and other devices.
