Netherlands tried to settle Nexperia, ASML disputes on trade visit to China

Minister Sjoerd Sjoerdsma (Foreign Trade, D66) wanted to “put an end to the recent period of disagreement” with China in Beijing. This concerned Nexperia and ASML, among other things. According to the Dutch Minister, his Chinese counterpart, Wang Wentao, also wanted to end the disputes.

“The relationship perhaps resembled a bumper car park more than a good bilateral relationship,” Sjoerdsma said, looking back after the meeting at the embassy. “One of my main goals today was also to get that relationship back into calmer waters, and that was immediately affirmed and embraced by the other side.”

The Minister is on a trade mission in China at a time when Europe and China are trying to prevent a trade war. The large Chinese trade surplus of around €1 billion per day with the EU is costing jobs and businesses. “We really need to balance that out.”

Sjoerdsma feels that the “sentiment” towards China is threatening to shift and that member states are opting for a hard line. He says he is “convinced” that China and the EU can reach an agreement. However, EU member states must not allow themselves to be played off against each other by China.

The trade surplus is “threatening to our future,” Sjoerdsma said. The EU and China have been discussing Chinese practices, such as subsidies for companies, for years. But according to him, the Chinese government is also very keen to prevent it from escalating into a tariff war. “And that is new.”

As far as the D66 politician is concerned, the dispute over chipmaker Nexperia has now been settled. When the Cabinet intervened at Nexperia last year, China was furious. There is now a “good dialogue and understanding” between the governments of the Netherlands and China. According to him, this must now happen within the companies as well.

He also raised the issue of the Uyghurs. China is forcing this Muslim minority into forced labor. An EU law against working with companies that use forced labor will come into force in 2027, and Chinese companies will also have to comply with it. They will quickly have “a big problem” if they do not have their affairs in order, Sjoerdsma said.

Human Rights Watch has accused China of committing crimes against humanity in its treatment of Uyghurs. In 2021, the Tweede Kamer, the lower house of the Dutch parliament, adopted a motion stating that China is committing genocide against Uyghurs. This was partly at Sjoerdsma’s initiative. He was a parliamentarian at the time.