The Dutch government’s reversal regarding chipmaker Nexperia seems to be following the example of the latest U.S. wobbliness about export controls and the terms of trade between the United States and the People’s Republic of China (Associated Press, November 19, 2025).
Economics Affairs Minister Vincent Karremans said Wednesday that he was suspending an earlier order to take control of Nexperia under a rarely invoked law.
The Dutch government had cited national security concerns and “serious governance shortcomings” when it took effective control of Nexperia, which is headquartered in the [Dutch] city of Nijmegen but owned by China’s Wingtech Technology. Officials had said they were trying to prevent the loss of crucial tech know-how that could threaten Europe’s economic security….
Karremans said he was suspending his order issued in late September as a “show of goodwill” in a decision that came after “constructive meetings” with Chinese authorities over the past few days.
“In light of recent developments, The Netherlands has considered it the right moment to take a constructive step by suspending my order under the Goods Availability Act,” he said in a statement.
“We are positive about the measures already taken by the Chinese authorities to ensure the supply of chips to Europe and the rest of the world.”
In late 2024, the U.S. had placed Wingtech, current owner of Nexperia, on the Entity List of Chinese tech firms subject to our export controls. Then, in September 2025, the U.S. strengthened the export controls so that Entity-Listed companies could no longer use subsidiaries like Nexperia to evade the controls. The U.S. also warned the Netherlands that Nexperia’s Chinese CEO “would have to be replaced to avoid trade restrictions….”
But after U.S. President Donald Trump met with Chinese Dictator Xi Jinping in Korea in late October, the U.S. suspended this improvement, known as the Affiliates Rule, for at least a year as part of a new deal between the U.S. and China. So now, at least for the next year, it is again possible for foreign companies that are subject, sort of, to U.S. export controls to use a subsidiary to evade the controls.
One of the cudgels that the Chinese government has deployed to extract this and other concessions is its global dominance over the mining and especially processing of rare earths, essential in much technology. The U.S. government is trying to encourage rare-earth production in the U.S. and increase imports of crucial minerals from non-CCP countries.
Also see:
WorldECR: “China grants export exemptions for Nexperia, suspends US critical minerals ban” (November 13, 2025)
“China has taken concrete measures to grant exemptions for compliant exports for civilian use in response to the Nexperia semiconductor dispute and suspended its ban on exports of gallium, germanium, antimony and superhard materials to the United States until 27 November 2026, according to statements from the Ministry of Commerce.”
StotheCCP.org: “The Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World of Rare Earths”
