On March 27, Commerce Minister Wang Wentao met with Geoffrey van Leeuwen, the visiting Dutch Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, and had an in-depth exchange of views with him on the export of lithography machines and ways to strengthen cooperation in the semiconductor industry. Ling Ji, Vice Commerce Minister and Deputy China International Trade Representative, also joined the meeting.

Wang Wentao said that this year marks the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the open and pragmatic partnership for Comprehensive Cooperation between China and the Netherlands. Under the strategic guidance of the leaders of the two countries, China-Netherlands economic and trade relations have developed steadily. He said that China appreciates the Netherlands’ commitment to free trade, and regards it as a reliable economic and trade partner. He expressed hope for the Netherlands to uphold the spirit of contract, support the fulfillment of contractual obligations by Dutch companies, and ensure normal trade in lithography machines. He stressed it’s important to prevent the generalization of the concept of security, jointly maintain the stability of the global semiconductor industrial chains and supply chains, and promote the sustained and healthy development of bilateral economic and trade relations.

Van Luewen said that the Netherlands is built on trade, advocates free trade and attaches great importance to economic and trade cooperation with China. China is one of the most important trading partners of the Netherlands, and the Netherlands is willing to continue to be a reliable partner of China. Dutch export controls do not target any country, and the decisions are made based on an independent assessment and in a safe and controllable manner to minimize the impact on the global semiconductor industrial chains and supply chains. He expressed hope that the two countries will expand cooperation in green transformation and elderly care services.

(All information published on this website is authentic in Chinese. English is provided for reference only.)