China and the Netherlands seek ‘pragmatic’ reset as Nexperia row rolls on

The phone call between the Dutch and Chinese foreign ministers was a first on a series of fronts.For the new Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen, the call on March 13 was his first with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi since taking on the job a few weeks earlier.It was also the first between the two holders of the offices since China and the Netherlands became embroiled in a row over the control of Chinese-owned, Netherlands-based chipmaker Nexperia.Nexperia is a major component in the electric vehicle supply chain and wholly owned by Wingtech Technology, a company that the United States has blacklisted in its growing technological rivalry with China.In September, Dutch authorities seized control of Nexperia’s management and ousted its Chinese CEO, Zhang Xuezheng – who is also Wingtech’s founder – to prevent what it said was the transfer of technology from Nexperia to China.The move upended supply chains around the world and led to a series of swift countermeasures by Beijing.The row has yet to be resolved but in the call with Berendsen in mid-March, Wang said China appreciated the “positive signals”.