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US Department of Commerce official “Set upper limit on semiconductor level of Samsung and SK factories in China”

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An official from the U.S. Department of Commerce announced on the 23rd (local time) that it will set an upper limit on Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, which have factories in China, to prevent them from producing semiconductors above a certain level of technology.

Alan Esteves, undersecretary for industrial security at the U.S. Department of Commerce, said at the Korea-U.S. Economic Security Forum hosted by the Korea Foundation (KF) and Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) held in Washington on the same day, “Semiconductor exports to China provided to Samsung and SK Hynix. This is how he answered the question of what happens after the one-year suspension of control ends.

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“We’re working with these companies on the way forward,” he said. “There’s a good chance we’ll put a cap on level at which they can develop in China.”

“If companies are producing any ‘short’ NAND, we will stop it somewhere in that range,” he explained. NAND flashes manufactured by Samsung and SK Hynix in China evaluate the level of technology by stacking technology related to how high semiconductor cells are stacked.

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Regarding the upper limit, he said, “It depends on what China does, but we are having in-depth conversations with Korean companies about it.” said.

The U.S. Department of Commerce announced export control measures to prevent exports of U.S. semiconductor equipment to semiconductor manufacturing companies in China in October of last year, but allowed a one-year grace period for Samsung and SK Hynix factories in China. The South Korean government, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are currently demanding an extension of the semiconductor export control moratorium.

Meanwhile, at the forum that day, Vice Minister Esteves also mentioned cooperation with Korea regarding overall export controls.

He expressed his appreciation for Korea’s export control cooperation with Russia, saying, “Korea is one of our firm partners in implementing export controls around the world.” Regarding China’s export control measures, he added, “it will impede China’s ability to collectively build the capacity to threaten us.”

Regarding the export control of semiconductors to China, which is being pursued with the Netherlands and Japan, he only mentioned that “we are having multilateral discussions with our allies.”

Prior to Vice Minister Esteves’ remarks at the forum, Minister of Foreign Affairs Park Jin gave a keynote speech and emphasized the importance of the ROK-US alliance in terms of cutting-edge technology.

Source: Donga

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