Dutch Foreign Minister says China is Russia's key enabler in its war against Ukraine
Photo: Caspar Veldkamp (Vitalii Nosach/RBC-Ukraine)
China-Russia trade is directly affecting European security, while NATO views China as a "decisive enabler" of Russia in its war against Ukraine, according to Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp, Reuters reports.
Before a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels, the Dutch Foreign Minister said that Chinese firms are selling goods that are eventually used as components for Russian weapons, including drones.
"I raised this twice with the Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, and I think as Europeans, we should all do this because this is something that China should be realizing: it is directly affecting European security," Veldkamp said.
In coordination with the United States, the Netherlands has imposed progressively tighter export restrictions to prevent ASML from supplying its most advanced technologies to Chinese chipmakers.
ASML dominates the market for lithography equipment, which is essential for producing computer chip circuits.
Despite these restrictions, China has remained the largest market for ASML and other leading equipment makers from the US and Japan over the past 18 months. Chinese companies have expanded their capacity to produce older chips, which fall outside the restrictions but are still suitable for many military purposes.
ASML's tool sales to Chinese firms hit a record €2.79 billion in the third quarter, though the company forecasts a decline by 2025.
Veldkamp said he would discuss China's support for Russia with other EU foreign ministers on Monday.
"We are discussing anything regarding foreign assistance to Russia in its war in Ukraine, be it Iran, be it North Korea, be it China," the Dutch Foreign Minister said.
Hostile China
In September 2024, then-NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg described China as a key factor enabling Russia's war efforts. "China is the one that enables production of many of the weapons that Russia uses," Stoltenberg said.
Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Beijing has provided Moscow with diplomatic and economic support.
According to a survey conducted by the Razumkov Center, most Ukrainians view China as a hostile country. Ukrainians have a worse attitude only towards Russia and its allies – Iran, Belarus, and North Korea.
