The US President, Donald Trump, has announced a deal with China, permitting the TikTok platform to remain operational in the United States. Trump is scheduled to converse with the Chinese President, Xi Jinping, on Friday regarding the details of the agreement aimed at avoiding a ban on the popular video-sharing app in the US.
The President mentioned that “We have a group of very big companies that want to buy it. And you know, the kids want it so badly.” He added, “I had parents calling me up. They don’t want it for themselves, they want it for their kids. They say, if I don’t get it done, they are in big trouble with their kids. And I think it’s great.”
Trump later signed an executive order extending the deadline until December 16 for TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to divest from the platform or face a ban.
He offered no specific details about the deal, but according to reports from the Wall Street Journal and The New York Times, the Chinese ownership stake in TikTok would fall below 20 percent as part of the proposed agreement.
China’s People’s Daily, an official Communist Party newspaper, praised the deal as a benefit to both parties. “China’s commitment to safeguarding national interests and the legitimate rights of Chinese enterprises remains unwavering,” the newspaper stated.
However, Yan Liang, an economics professor at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon, questioned the deal’s terms, suggesting that China’s concessions may require reciprocation from the US. “I’d be surprised that China agrees with such a deal without [many] concessions from the US,” Yan commented.
The TikTok platform’s future has been in doubt since last year when lawmakers in Washington passed legislation mandating the platform relinquish its Chinese ownership due to concerns about the potential for Chinese espionage and propaganda.
Though Democrats and Republicans backed the ban, opponents argued it infringed on freedom of speech and did not adequately address wider privacy issues on social media.
Ryan Calo, co-director of the Tech Policy Lab at the University of Washington, welcomed the deal, saying, “From that perspective, striking a deal to preserve TikTok in the United States is a win”. However, he criticized the administration’s process, stating, “This is a blow to the rule of law, among many.”
The deal raises potential concerns about political influence over content, as Anupam Chander, a law and technology expert at Georgetown Law, noted, “For TikTok users in the US to wonder if we will see our TikTok content change to reflect the views of TikTok’s new owners, who may have a friendly relationship with the current Administration.”
Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2025/9/17/trump-announces-deal-with-china-to-allow-tiktok-continue-operating-in-us?traffic_source=rss
