Netherlands "Direct Control Over Export of Two Types of ASML Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography Equipment"

On the 6th (local time), the Netherlands announced that it will directly control the export of two immersion deep ultraviolet (DUV) lithography machines from its semiconductor equipment company ASML.

The Dutch Ministry of Commerce stated in a press release that when exporting the immersion DUV lithography machines NXT 1970i and NXT 1980i to China, export permission must be obtained from the Dutch government, not the U.S. government. This decision was made citing national security reasons, and the revised export control regulations will take effect from the 7th.

This measure is interpreted as the Netherlands joining the U.S.'s repeated pressure to expand export controls on China. The U.S. has independently restricted exports of these two DUV machines to China, and the Netherlands is already known to have controlled exports of cutting-edge extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography equipment.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]