Following a statement released by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, TikTok has resumed operations in the United States. Trump pledged to review the TikTok issue immediately upon taking office and to share his stance on the Supreme Court’s ruling. It is highly likely that Donald Trump will extend the deadline given to TikTok to divest its U.S. operations to an American business.
"We have no other choice. We must save it [TikTok]" – Donald Trump said at a pre-inauguration press conference. He also noted that he would personally participate in the search for a company acceptable to both ByteDance and the U.S. government, in order to ensure that more than 170 million Americans are not denied access to the app.
Thanks to Donald Trump’s efforts, TikTok responded to its reinstatement in the U.S. with an in-app notification. "Thanks to President Trump’s efforts, TikTok is back in the U.S." – this message appeared on the app’s main page for American users. In a separate statement, the app’s administration thanked Donald Trump for convincing TikTok’s service providers that they would not be penalized for continuing to support the platform.
Earlier, the Chinese Embassy in the U.S. responded to the TikTok ban, stating that the United States was abusing its power against the app. "China will take all necessary measures to protect its rights and interests," – said a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in the U.S.
As a reminder, on January 19, the Supreme Court issued a ruling that restricted TikTok’s operations in the U.S. ByteDance was required to divest its American business to a U.S.-based company by that deadline, which did not happen. The brief shutdown of TikTok caused significant dissatisfaction among American users.
