AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Tuesday said he saw gradual progress in talks over new restrictions the United States wants it to implement on exporting chip-making technology to China.
“I think that step by step we will be able to reach a good outcome in cooperation,” Rutte said in an interview with Dutch TV programme Nieuwsuur following his visit to the White House.
The leaders discussed U.S. requests for the Netherlands to adopt U.S. rules introduced in October aimed at hobbling China’s chipmaking industry to slow its technological and military advances, but details of the talks were not disclosed.
The Netherlands is home to ASML Holding NV, a key maker of semiconductor manufacturing equipment. China accounted for 15% of its sales in 2021 – about 2 billion euros ($2.2 billion) worth of sales that could be affected if the Netherlands were to adopt the new U.S. rules.
Rutte said it was important for Western countries to not lose their leading position in advanced semiconductor technologies and that advanced chips should not be used for military purposes “in countries where you do not wish that to happen.”
But he also warned that global supply chains for simpler technologies should not be disrupted by export restrictions.
“This goes broader than just one country. We don’t talk only with the U.S., we talk to many partners,” he said.
(Reporting by Bart Meijer and Toby Sterling, editing by Deepa Babington)