It is hoped that the US side will aim for the same goal as China,” ministry says
China remained firm on its position regarding the future of TikTok in the US on Saturday, a day after President Donald Trump announced a deal to change short video app TikTok to US-controlled ownership was making headway.
“China’s stance on TikTok is clear: The Chinese government respects the enterprise’s will, and welcomes it to conduct commercial negotiations in accordance with market principles to achieve a solution that is in line with China’s regulations and laws, and strikes a balance of interests,” China’s Commerce Ministry stated in a release, echoing a stance that the ministry has held over the course of the past week.
Major questions remain regarding the possible US/China deal following Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping having a call on Friday.
China maintains its position regarding the US future of TikTok after Trump’s phone call
They involve the exact ownership structure of TikTok, the degree of control China will have over the app’s inner mechanics, and what Beijing receives from rolling over and allowing the US to intrude on one of China’s most successful firms.
Move on the future of the social media platform—used by 170 million Americans—is considered most critical for tapping brakes on concessions elsewhere—from airplanes to soybeans—as the world’s two biggest economies map a way beyond their present tariff ceasefire.
“It is expected that the US side will make efforts for the same objective as China, sincerely fulfill its corresponding obligations, and offer an open, fair, just and non-discriminatory business environment for Chinese businesses to continue to operate in the US, including TikTok,” the Commerce Ministry statement continued.
Since a framework deal was struck in Madrid earlier this week, Chinese officials and state media have called it a “win-win”, promising to review TikTok’s technology exports and intellectual property licensing.
The framework agreement was another barrier Trump had to overcome in order to maintain TikTok available. US Congress had originally demanded the app be closed to US users by January 2025 if Chinese owner ByteDance sold off its US assets.
He Yadong, a Commerce Ministry spokesman for China, repeated China’s expectation that the US ease the trade barriers confronting Chinese companies when questioned about what Beijing had gained from the Madrid accord at a press conference on Thursday.
