The US treasury secretary has said Washington reached a framework deal with China on the ownership of TikTok's American operations.
Scott Bessent said the framework was set in trade talks in Madrid to pave the way for US ownership. He added that US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping would complete the deal on Friday.
Trump stated on Truth Social that the talks had gone very well, while China confirmed a framework agreement but insisted that no deal would compromise Chinese companies' interests.
A deadline is looming for the Chinese owner of TikTok to find a buyer for its American operations or risk facing a shutdown and ban in the US.
Bessent announced the framework deal on the second day of negotiations aimed at resolving a trade war.
He noted that the threat of shutting down TikTok in the US prompted Chinese negotiators to abandon demands for reduced tariffs as part of the agreement.
He emphasized that the agreed-upon commercial terms would safeguard US national security interests.
US trade representative Jamieson Greer, part of the US delegation in Madrid, stated that the deal was subject to the leaders' approval but mentioned his team was not in the business of having repetitive [ban] extensions.
China's top trade negotiator, Li Chenggang, stressed that any deal would respect China's principles and the interests of Chinese companies, indicating that the leadership would review any agreement before it was finalized.
On Monday, Bessent assured that the deal completely respects US national security concerns. However, some experts remain skeptical about the specifics, particularly regarding control of TikTok's powerful recommendation algorithm.
Concerns were raised about whether the data of American users will be stored and protected in the US and if independent audits would be conducted to prevent backdoors for Beijing.
Experts argue that while ownership issues may be resolved, fundamental vulnerabilities remain unaddressed.
With ByteDance being one of the largest AI firms in China, the implications of TikTok’s data usage could extend into sensitive national security realms, should the terms not adequately protect against potential misuse.
As the deadline approaches on September 17, discussions around potential buyers continue, with figures like Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and YouTube creator MrBeast previously mentioned.
