On July 4, U.S. President Donald Trump announced his intention to begin negotiations with China regarding the possible sale of the popular app TikTok. According to him, these talks could start as early as July 7 or 8, Reuters reports.
Trump emphasized that the United States has “practically” reached an agreement on the sale of TikTok, which sparked significant interest among the media and users.
“I think we’ll start on Monday or Tuesday… talks with China, possibly with President Xi or one of his representatives, but we would have almost reached an agreement.”
Recall that last month Trump extended the deadline to September 17, during which the Chinese company ByteDance was required to divest its American TikTok assets. Initially, the plan was to create a new American company to control TikTok’s U.S. operations, but these negotiations were suspended due to escalating trade tensions between the U.S. and China.
The president also noted that the deal would require approval from China.
“I’m not sure, but I think so. We have a great relationship with President Xi, and I think it’s good for them. I think the deal is good for China, and it’s good for us.”
The ban on TikTok in the U.S. is driven by national security concerns. The U.S. Department of Justice believes the app could pose a threat due to potential propaganda dissemination and the collection of user data that might be passed on to the Chinese government.
A law signed by former President Joe Biden in April 2024 required ByteDance to sell TikTok to an American owner within nine months, or the platform would be banned in the U.S. ByteDance challenged this law in the Supreme Court, but on January 17, 2025, the court upheld its validity.
In January 2025, TikTok temporarily suspended its operations in the U.S., and the app disappeared from the App Store and Google Play. However, following Trump’s announcement of a delay in blocking the platform, the service began to resume its operations.
