Xi Jinping: China's technological progress cannot be stopped

Chinese leader Xi Jinping told Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte that China's technological progress cannot be stopped as the two met in Beijing for talks on topics including the all-important semiconductor industry, AFP reported.
Dutch chipmaker ASML is one of the world's leading manufacturers of equipment for the production of state-of-the-art semiconductors that are used in everything from mobile phones to cars.
The sector has become a key battleground in recent years, with the United States and some European countries blocking exports of high-tech chip technology to China over concerns of military use.
ASML announced this year that it had been banned from exporting a "small number" of its advanced machinery to China amid reports of US pressure on the Dutch government.
"The Chinese people also have legitimate rights to development, and no force can stop the pace of China's scientific and technological progress," Xi told Rutte on Wednesday, according to state news agency Xinhua.
Xi added that "China will continue to follow a win-win approach, (and) open up more widely to the outside world at a high level."
"There is no way out to 'separate and break the chain', and openness and cooperation are the only choices," the report quoted him as saying.
At a press conference, Rutte told reporters that he could not share details about what was discussed around the semiconductors.
"What I can tell you about our semiconductor sector and companies like ASML is that when we have to take action, it's never specific to one country. We always try to make sure that the impact is limited, it doesn't affect the supply chain and therefore doesn't affect, say, the overall economic relationship," he concluded. /BGNES