The Chinese government has urged the Netherlands that Dutch officials “correct their mistakes” regarding the takeover of chipmaker Nexperia, and help in restoring the global chip supply chain. In a statement released this week, the Chinese commerce ministry described the Dutch administrative interference as “inappropriate” and “perplexing”.“China once again urges the Netherlands not to act unilaterally, but to immediately correct its mistakes and clear the obstacles to restoring the stability and security of the global semiconductor supply chain,” the Chinese commerce ministry said in a statement, as per news agency Reuters. The statement comes months after the conflict started when in September, the Dutch government took control of Nexperia to prevent its founder from allegedly moving sensitive technology and production facilities to China. In response, Beijing froze exports of Nexperia chips, which are critical components for the global automotive and consumer electronics sectors. Most of Nexperia chips are packaged in Chinese facilities.

‘It was necessary’: Dutch Economic Affairs Minister

Dutch economic affairs minister Vincent Karremans has stood firm on the company’s move, defending the intervention as a matter of national security.“I wouldn’t characterise it as enjoyable, but it was necessary. I don’t let my decisions be guided by whether they’re enjoyable or not,” Karremans said. The Dutch government had briefly suspended its intervention in November as a “gesture of goodwill” while negotiations continued.As a result of this standoff, a “packaging bottleneck” has been created that threatens the flow of components to major European car manufacturers. Nexperia specialises in “discretes” and power semiconductors which are essentially the “workhorse” chips of modern vehicles. An export block from China could lead to factory slowdowns across the continent.