The fate of short video app TikTok in the United States remains in limbo, according to analysts, even as the Trump administration gives owner ByteDance a fresh 90-day extension to find a non-Chinese buyer for the popular platform’s operations in the country.
The White House on Tuesday said US President Donald Trump would sign another executive order this week “to keep TikTok up and running” in the US.
While Beijing and Washington work on a trade deal, “the TikTok issue is beyond the scope of traditional trade, as it involves national security, data sovereignty, technological competition and other highly sensitive issues”, said Sun Chenghao, a fellow and head of the US-EU programme of the Centre for International Security and Strategy at Tsinghua University.
“Even if there is some easing in the trade area, the prudent attitude towards the [TikTok] issue has not been loosened”, he said.
His assessment reflects the uncertainty on whether Trump can – or will – keep extending the ban, as the government continues to try to negotiate a deal for TikTok.
