Outgoing Economic Affairs Minister Vincent Karremans (VVD) will not go to China next week to discuss the diplomatic row surrounding the Nijmegen chipmaker Nexperia. The Chinese ministers are at a conference at the time of the trip and are therefore not available to Karremans, the minister wrote in a letter on Tuesday. letter to the House. If the situation around Nexperia still gives reason to do so, he says he still wants to travel at short notice.
In September, Karremans arrogated himself the right to reverse Nexperia’s strategic business decisions, because he was afraid that the Chinese owner would transfer technology, knowledge and financial resources to China — with all the geopolitical consequences that entails. The measure sparked anger in Beijing. China announced an export ban on chips that Nexperia manufactures in China, with direct consequences for European automakers in particular, who were in uncertainty about deliveries for weeks.
In November, top Dutch officials from Economic Affairs went to China — without the minister — to calm the mood. That consultation led to Karremans partly suspending his intervention as a “show of good will”. According to the minister, there is no longer any immediate danger that Nexperia will transfer crucial capabilities or intellectual property to China. However, the suspension is not a final step: the decision can be reactivated if the situation changes.
In the meantime, Karremans must answer for his approach in the House of Representatives. Parties such as Volt and GroenLinks-PvdA believe that the minister escalated the conflict too quickly and are demanding clarification about his actions. That debate was scheduled before the trip to China — a trip that has now been postponed and for which no new date has yet been announced, partly because diplomatic discussions about the future of Nexperia are still ongoing.
Karremans emphasizes that the postponement of the mission is not a signal of slackening. According to him, diplomatic negotiations are continuing and agreements have been made with his Chinese colleague from Trade to hold consultations in person soon, if necessary. According to the companies involved, the supply problems in the European chip chain have still not been fully resolved.
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