US Lobbying Netherlands to Stop Certain ASML Exports to China, Report Says

U.S. officials are urging the Netherlands to ban ASML Holding from selling certain chipmaking technology to China, Bloomberg reported July 5. The U.S. is hoping the Netherlands expands an existing moratorium on the sale of the “most advanced systems” to China, the report said, and “ significantly” expand the type of chipmaking equipment subject to China-related export restrictions. American officials are specifically lobbying their Dutch counterparts to ban ASML from exporting its older deep ultraviolet lithography, or DUV systems, to China, the report said. U.S. officials discussed the issue with the Dutch government during Deputy Commerce Secretary Don Grave’s recent visit to the Netherlands.

An ASML spokesperson told Bloomberg the discussions are “not new” and no decisions on the restrictions have been made. A Commerce spokesperson declined to comment. The U.S. in 2020 persuaded the Dutch government not to renew an export license for ASML to sell its “most advanced machine” to a Chinese customer (see 2001060033).