Chinese Commerce Minister: "Japan's Semiconductor Export Restrictions Violate International Trade"

Wang Wentao Holds Talks with Japan's Economy and Industry Minister Nishimura in the US on the Occasion of APEC

Wang Wentao, China's Minister of Commerce, urged Japan to halt its export restrictions on semiconductor equipment to China.

On the 29th, during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Trade Ministers' Meeting held in Detroit, USA, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce held a bilateral meeting with Japan and protested Japan's export restrictions on semiconductor equipment to China.

Wang Wentao, Chinese Minister of Commerce.
Photo by Yonhap News

According to the Chinese Ministry of Commerce website, on the 26th (local time) in Detroit, Minister Wang held talks with Japan's Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Nishimura Yasutoshi, raising a "stern negotiation" regarding Japan's enforcement of semiconductor-related export control measures and the anti-China stance at the G7 Hiroshima Summit (19th?21st). Stern negotiation refers to an official protest.

Minister Wang stated, "Japan, ignoring China's strong opposition and the voices of the industry, insists on semiconductor export control measures, severely violating international economic and trade rules and seriously damaging the foundation of industrial development. China expresses strong dissatisfaction with this."

Minister Wang further urged Japan to correct its "wrong actions" and effectively safeguard the stability of the global industrial and supply chains, the Ministry of Commerce said.

Regarding the G7 summit joint statement, which included many contents aimed at containing China on issues such as Taiwan, he said, "We firmly oppose interference in China's internal affairs," and "We hope Japan will correct its perception of China and genuinely adopt a constructive attitude to promote the stable development of bilateral economic and trade relations."

He added, "China is willing to actively contribute to promoting substantial cooperation with Japan in key economic and trade areas, providing a fair, transparent, and predictable business environment, and building China-Japan relations that meet the demands of the new era."

On the 23rd, Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry officially announced that it would strengthen export controls on 23 advanced semiconductor items, including lithography equipment used to record delicate circuit patterns on substrates and devices used for cleaning and inspection. Although the Japanese government stated that these measures were not aimed specifically at China, China views them as coordinated with the United States, which decided last October to ban the sale of advanced semiconductor equipment to Chinese semiconductor manufacturers.

On the same day, the 26th, Minister Wang emphasized Korea-China cooperation related to the semiconductor industrial and supply chains during talks with Ahn Duk-geun, Director-General for Trade Negotiations at South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.