Trump and Xi Report Progress on TikTok, Agree to Meet Face-to-Face

U.S. President Donald Trump announced that he and Chinese President Xi Jinping had made progress on a TikTok agreement and would meet in person in South Korea in six weeks to discuss trade, illicit drugs, and Russia’s war in Ukraine. During the first phone call between the two leaders in three months, tensions appeared to ease, but it was not immediately clear if the call had produced the anticipated firm agreement on the future of the popular short-video app. The U.S. president confirmed that the leaders had agreed to hold further talks on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, which is set to begin on October 31 in Gyeongju, South Korea. Trump also stated that he would visit China early next year, and Xi would come to the U.S. at a later date. Reuters had previously reported that such a meeting was being planned by both sides. “We made progress on many very important issues including Trade, Fentanyl, the need to bring the War between Russia and Ukraine to an end, and the approval of the TikTok Deal,” Trump wrote on social media. “The call was a very good one, we will be speaking again by phone, appreciate the TikTok approval, and both look forward to meeting at APEC!” he added. Beijing’s final approval of a framework deal that the two sides reached earlier this week is one of the hurdles Trump needed to clear to keep TikTok operating. Congress had mandated that the app would be shut down for U.S. users by January 2025 unless its U.S. assets were sold by its Chinese owner, ByteDance. Trump’s statement did not provide specific details about the progress, and China’s statement made no direct mention of any agreement on TikTok. This week, Trump had repeatedly hinted that a deal might be imminent. According to a summary of the meeting in Xinhua, “On TikTok, Xi said China’s position is clear: the Chinese government respects the will of firms and welcomes companies to conduct business negotiations on the basis of market rules to reach a solution consistent with Chinese laws and regulations while balancing interests.” A U.S. official said the phone call between Trump and Xi began at 8 a.m. Eastern time (1200 GMT), with China’s first statements following nearly three hours later. “Beijing is banking on optics and time, while Washington is chasing a TikTok headline and a summit, and hopes, I think, for more wins later,” said Craig Singleton, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a think tank. “I think the Chinese are very happy with the current dynamic.” The White House did not respond to a request for comment. National security concerns: Trump has chosen not to enforce the TikTok law while his administration seeks a new owner. This is also because he is concerned that a ban on the app could anger its massive user base and disrupt political communication. “I like TikTok; it helped get me elected,” Trump said during a press conference on Thursday. “TikTok has tremendous value. The United States has that value in its hand because we’re the ones that have to approve it.”