On March 27, Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao met with the visiting Minister of Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Netherlands, Van Luwen, in Beijing. The two sides focused on the in-depth exchange of views on issues such as the export of lithography machines to China and the strengthening of cooperation in the semiconductor industry. Ling Ji, Vice Minister of Commerce and Deputy Representative for International Trade Negotiations, attended the meeting.

Wang Wentao said that this year marks the 10th anniversary of the establishment of an open and pragmatic comprehensive cooperative partnership 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. China appreciates the Netherlands' adherence to free trade and regards the Netherlands as a reliable economic and trade partner, and hopes that the Netherlands will uphold the spirit of the contract, support enterprises in fulfilling their contractual obligations, and ensure the normal trade of lithography machines. It is necessary to prevent the generalization of security, jointly maintain the stability of the global semiconductor industry chain and supply chain, and promote the sustained and healthy development of bilateral economic and trade relations.

Van Luwen said that the Netherlands is a trade-based country, advocates free trade, and attaches great importance to economic and trade cooperation with China. China is one of the most important economic and trade partners of the Netherlands, and the Netherlands is willing to continue to be a reliable partner of China. The Dutch export control is not aimed at any country, and the decisions made are based on independent evaluation, and the impact on the global semiconductor industry chain and supply chain is minimized under the premise of safety and control. It is expected that the two countries will further expand cooperation in areas such as green transformation and elderly care services.