President Donald Trump has given TikTok a 75-day extension, avoiding a ban on the Chinese-owned app before its April 5 deadline.
In a Friday post on Truth Social, the US President cited an executive order to extend negotiations as a lifeline for a deal he hopes to seal.
“My administration has been working very hard on a deal to save TikTok, and we have made tremendous progress,” Trump wrote.
“The deal requires more work to ensure all necessary approvals are signed, which is why I am signing an executive order to keep TikTok up and running for an additional 75 days.”
TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, has been pressured to divest its US business following bipartisan legislation passed in 2024 that mandates the app’s separation from Chinese ownership.
The ban was initially deferred on his first day back in office in January and was set to go into effect on April 5.
Trump peppered his speech with a jab at China, annoyed, he said, by his reciprocal tariffs. “We hope to continue working in good faith with China,” he continued, calling tariffs “the most powerful economic tool” and crucial for national security.
“We do not want TikTok to ‘go dark’,” he insisted, eyeing a resolution that keeps the app alive.
“We look forward to working with TikTok and China to close the deal. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
