The United States claims that an ASML chip manufacturing tool is located in China, but ASML refutes this assertion.

      The United States has accused the sole company in the world responsible for manufacturing the machines that create cutting-edge chips of allowing one of its machines to reach China. However, it has not provided any evidence to support its claim, and the company insists that no such incident occurred.

      In a recent series of discussions, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick informed ASML's senior executives that the U.S. believes one of its advanced lithography machines may have been sent to China, violating export restrictions led by the U.S. ASML, the Dutch company that nearly monopolizes this technology, denies these allegations.

      Claims from the U.S.

      As reported by Bloomberg, Lutnick’s team maintains that it has proof ASML shipped components and transport equipment related to extreme ultraviolet (EUV) technology to China, but it has consistently refused to disclose this evidence. EUV machines are crucial for producing the most sophisticated semiconductors, and ASML is the only manufacturer of these machines. Since approximately 2019, they have been restricted from being sold to China, marking the latest chapter in an ongoing chip conflict that has repeatedly involved the Dutch firm.

      ASML's firm denial

      ASML has responded with a strong denial. The company has distributed a document in Washington titled “No indication of any ASML EUV system in China,” and its statement is clear: it has “never shipped an EUV machine to China,” nor any “component, module, or equipment specifically designed for use in an EUV machine.”

      Challenging the accusation

      The business rationale contradicts the charges. ASML’s export license is critical to its survival, and while China's share of its revenue has decreased from about a third to a fifth, it remains its largest market. Sacrificing that license to serve a single Chinese client would be tantamount to corporate suicide. This situation presents a central dilemma: a serious accusation with no public evidence against a company with every incentive to avoid the alleged action.

      Increased pressure

      This situation arises as Washington intensifies pressure on its allies. A proposed U.S. law would require the Netherlands and Japan to align their export regulations with American rules or risk unilateral enforcement, with President Trump reportedly exerting heavy pressure on the Dutch government.

      The pressure is particularly awkward given that ASML’s future is becoming more closely tied to the U.S.; it has recently agreed to assist in building Elon Musk’s $55 billion “Terafab” chip factory in Texas, even as Washington increases its enforcement efforts.

      For ASML, the implication is that mere compliance may no longer suffice. The company is now tasked with proving a negative within Washington’s timeline, all while maintaining an approximate $700 billion valuation and its business dealings with China.

      Until the U.S. presents the evidence it claims to possess, the situation remains a standoff concerning the potential presence of one machine that may or may not be where it should not be, influencing the entire Western initiative to prevent advanced chip manufacturing from reaching China.