Chinese language and U.S. flags flutter close to The Bund, earlier than U.S. commerce delegation meet their Chinese language counterparts for talks in Shanghai, China July 30, 2019.
Aly Track | Reuters
BEIJING — China’s Ministry of Commerce mentioned Thursday the U.S. is weaponizing export controls and utilizing them as a instrument.
”We’re extremely involved about the USA’ direct intervention and interference within the difficulty of high-tech exports by Dutch firms to China,” spokesperson Shu Jueting mentioned on the ministry’s first press convention in 2024, in response to a CNBC translation of her Mandarin-language remarks.
“America has instrumentalized and weaponized export management points,” she mentioned, calling for the Dutch facet to “respect the spirit of the contract and help companies in conducting compliant commerce.”
She was responding to a query about ASML, the Netherlands-based firm that makes lithography machines which can be key to manufacturing superior semiconductors.
ASML mentioned in a Jan. 1 assertion the Dutch authorities restricted it from exporting some lithography merchandise to China.
The Dutch authorities final yr introduced new restrictions on exporting sure tools for manufacturing superior chips. The transfer adopted U.S. export controls aimed toward limiting the Chinese language navy’s entry to high-end semiconductor expertise.
ASML mentioned within the assertion that after discussions with the U.S. authorities, it discovered the most recent U.S. export guidelines in October cowl sure lithography instruments.
China “firmly opposes” such strikes and can take “mandatory measures” to guard Chinese language enterprise pursuits, Shu mentioned.
The ministry final yr introduced export controls on some metals utilized in chipmaking.
U.S.-China commerce talks give attention to chips
Chinese language Commerce Minister Wang Wentao additionally raised issues about U.S. chip export controls in a name Thursday with U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, in response to the ministry.
Wang “targeted on expressing critical concern about U.S. restrictions on third-party exports of lithography machines to China, investigations into the availability chain of legacy chips and sanctions that suppress Chinese language firms,” the ministry mentioned in a Chinese language-language readout translated by CNBC.
The U.S. Division of Commerce didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark outdoors of U.S. enterprise hours.
