Trump and Xi Set to Finalize TikTok Deal
President Trump and China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, are expected to speak on Friday by phone about the hugely popular video app TikTok. The two are expected to confirm the outline of a deal that would separate the app from its Chinese owner, ByteDance, to avoid a ban in the United States.
“We have a deal on TikTok. I’ve reached a deal with China. I’m going to speak to President Xi on Friday to confirm everything up,” Mr. Trump told reporters outside the White House on Tuesday.
TikTok’s future has been in limbo in the United States since January, when a federal law took effect requiring the company to find a non-Chinese owner or face a ban in the United States. The law was intended to address national security concerns that the app’s ownership could give Beijing a channel to spread propaganda or to collect sensitive data about Americans. Mr. Trump has extended the deadline four times.
Related Knowledge Center: The TikTok ban
The U.S. Congress passed and President Joe Biden signed into law a measure banning TikTok if it weren’t sold by its Chinese ownership. But now-President Donald Trump gave the service a reprieve, and a sale of its U.S. operations appears imminent.