South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol recently paid a four-day visit to the Netherlands, and before the visit, Yoon stressed that he would take this opportunity to discuss with the Dutch side on strengthening semiconductor cooperation between the two countries. Yoon Suk-yeol said that ensuring a stable supply chain of raw materials, components, and equipment is important to further realize the leap of the military industry. It is reported that the Netherlands has the world's top extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUV) and other lithography technologies, and the cooperation between the two countries will certainly contribute to South Korea's improvement of military industrial strength. Is it purely for collaboration?
It is worth mentioning that the United States proposed to create a "chip alliance", that is, the United States, Japan, Taiwan and South Korea will cooperate in the semiconductor industry chain to counter the rise of China. During this period, South Korea naturally played an important role in this alliance, because it owns Samsung, the world's largest memory chip manufacturer, and SK hynix, a technologically leading logic chip manufacturer. Considering the relationship between South Korea and the United States, South Korea's move is a petition submitted to the United States, saying that it is visiting the Netherlands and cooperating with the country, but in fact, it is a joint effort to deal with the challenge of "Chinese chips".
In fact, South Korea is not entirely because of the United States. Recently, South Korea has ushered in two bad news one after another. First, China suddenly cut off the supply of South Korea's vehicle urea solution, and South Korea's urea solution inventory itself is not large, so South Korea can only maintain the supply for 3 months at most. This is undoubtedly a huge challenge for South Korea. It is reported that about 98% of South Korea's AdBlue solution is dependent on China's supply. The main function of AdBlue solution is to remove nitrogen oxides emitted by diesel engines. South Korea is a country with a large number of diesel vehicles, so in fact, AdBlue solution is very important, once the supply is cut off, then the diesel vehicles will not be able to operate normally, and the subsequent consequences will affect traffic and logistics.
Although the reason for the supply cut is China's domestic supply shortage, since the Yoon Suk-yeol government has been opposed to South Korea in terms of economic relations with China, it is difficult not to suspect that China is dissatisfied with South Korea and gave "punishment". Second, China's restrictions on graphite exports have plagued South Korea before, and the Yoon Suk-yeol government has yet to find a solution to the graphite problem. In the face of this situation, I think that while Yin Xiyue feels great pressure, he also wants to "retaliate" against China. If China's move is a recent pro-American suppression of South Korea, then Yoon Suk-yeol wants to join forces with the Netherlands, but this is undoubtedly a big mistake.
We all know how dependent South Korea is on China, not to mention anything else, in the field of chips, a large number of South Korean chip products have been exported to China for many years, occupying an important position in China's semiconductor market. However, in order to keep up with the United States to deal with China, South Korea once did not hesitate to blockade China, resulting in a large number of chips piling up. In this regard, the South Koreans also shouted at one point, hoping that China could help South Korea. Now, have you forgotten the pain? Or are you scared of being "beaten" by China's recent two supply cuts, and you want to find a home to ensure that there will be no more problems in the chip field?
At least in the eyes of the mainland, this interaction and cooperation between South Korea and the Netherlands is a red flag to China. Is it possible to join forces with the Netherlands to deal with the challenge of "Chinese chips"? It is estimated that even South Koreans know that China's two supply cuts are already a warning, and Yoon Suk-yeol will inevitably make a big mistake when he visits the Netherlands to shake hands. There is no shortage of cooperation between China and the Netherlands in the field of science and technology, and the Dutch government's open-door policy is a recognition of China's market and scientific and technological strength. Compared to South Korea, it seems to me that no one with a brain would want to stand against China. In short, South Korea really wanted to stand on the opposite side of China, and it was definitely a bad day. (Dorae)