The US and China are close to reaching an agreement on social media platform TikTok, but a deal could hinge on Chinese demands for trade concessions, US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent said yesterday before entering a second day of talks in Madrid.
The US and China delegations are discussing the divestment from TikTok by Chinese owner ByteDance Ltd (字節跳動) as part of broader talks on tariffs and economic policy.
“Our Chinese counterparts have come with a very aggressive ask,” Bessent told reporters alongside US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.
Photo: Reuters
“We will see if we can get there at present. We are not willing to sacrifice national security for a social media app,” he said.
US and Chinese officials, led by Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng (何立峰), concluded a first day of talks in Madrid on Sunday on their strained trade ties, a looming divestiture deadline for TikTok, amid Washington’s demands that its allies place tariffs on imports from China over its purchases of Russian oil.
TikTok faces a potential ban in the US unless it moves to US ownership. The most likely result of the Madrid talks is seen as another extension of a deadline for TikTok owner ByteDance to divest its US operations by Sept. 17 or face a US shutdown.
The latest round of US-China negotiations —taking place in the baroque Palacio de Santa Cruz, home to Spain’s foreign ministry — is the fourth in four months.
Bessent said both sides had made good progress on technical details, but reaching a deal on other issues would be challenging.
Extending the TikTok divestment deadline would depend largely on how talks go this week, he said.
“From the Chinese perspective, they view as part and parcel of the potential TikTok deal a variety of matters, whether it’s tariffs or other measures that have been taken over years,” Greer said.
However, the US was not in a position to simply eliminate every measure it had ever taken to try to resolve the issue, he added. “We still have to grind through negotiations and discussions of the common understanding, and I don’t think this is the moment to just pull all those things.”
Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Lin Jian (林劍) said China had no new information to give.
“Regarding TikTok, China has repeatedly stated its position,” Lin said at a news conference in Beijing yesterday.
China’s embassy in Madrid notified reporters of a potential concluding news conference in the afternoon, indicating the talks could wrap up quickly.
Bessent is due to be in London today to meet British Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves ahead of US President Donald Trump’s state visit to the UK, which starts tomorrow.
Even if a deal over Chinese divestment from TikTok was not reached, it would not affect relations, Bessent added.
“It’s still very good at the highest levels,” he said. “Ambassador Greer and myself have great respect for all counterparts.”
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