Trump says U.S. has near-final TikTok deal, aims to discuss with China

President Donald Trump made the remark that the United States is "pretty much" working towards a deal to buy TikTok's U.S. operations, stating that talks with China will start in the next few days.

I believe we'll begin on Monday or Tuesday. possibly with President Xi or one of his delegates," Trump said to reporters on Air Force One as he flew to his Bedminster, New Jersey home Friday. "But we essentially have a deal."

The deal, Trump said, will probably need approval from China. Trump was hopeful for the result, speculating the deal would be beneficial to both parties.

"President Xi and I get along great," he stated. "I think the deal is a good deal for China, and it's a good deal for us."

The Future of TikTok in the U.S.

In a recent interview on Fox News' Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo, Trump again said American buyers had come forward for the highly popular social media platform, calling them "very rich people.

We do have a buyer for TikTok," Trump asserted. "I think that China is going to have to approve the deal. I think that President Xi will likely consent."

In a series of deadline extensions, Trump has provided TikTok's Chinese owner, ByteDance, with until September 17 to offload its U.S. assets. This is the third extension of this kind, Reuters reports.

Regulatory Pressure Intensifies

The U.S. had earlier neared completing a sale of TikTok's U.S. operations to an American company. The efforts were, however, halted amid resistance from Beijing, which complained about dissatisfaction over the Trump administration's tariff policies, according to reports.

TikTok now has some 170 million monthly active users in the U.S., according to an estimate. The company was originally called on to shut down by Jan. 19, in an executive order from Trump. The deadline was moved back by 90 days and extended again in April and June.

In April 2024, Congress approved the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act with bipartisan votes. The bill requires TikTok to split from ByteDance within nine months or be deleted from U.S. app stores and hosting sites.

Lawmakers pointed to national security risks with TikTok's Chinese affiliation, and they warned that the platform could be used to collect huge stores of user data or even as a tool for cyber warfare.