Trump announces TikTok deal with China, call with Xi on Friday

US President Donald Trump on Monday declared that the United States and China had reached a breakthrough deal over TikTok as part of wider trade discussions in Madrid, and said he will be speaking with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote: "The big Trade Meeting in Europe between The United States of America, and China, has gone VERY WELL! It will be concluding shortly. A deal was also reached on a ‘certain’ company that young people in our Country very much wanted to save. They will be very happy! I will be speaking to President Xi on Friday. The relationship remains a very strong one!!! President DJT."

The announcement came during the latest round of high-level talks led by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, which opened in Madrid on Sunday and are scheduled to continue until Wednesday. Bessent confirmed that the two sides had agreed on a "framework" deal to resolve the dispute over the Chinese-owned video-sharing platform.

Earlier in the day, Bessent had signaled progress, saying the United States was "very close" to a settlement with Beijing over TikTok.

The talks also coincide with a looming deadline. Under US law, TikTok is required to find a buyer or face a nationwide ban, with the current extension set to expire on Wednesday. The app, owned by Chinese internet giant ByteDance, has been under scrutiny on national security grounds.

A law mandating TikTok's sale or ban was set to take effect the day before Trump’s inauguration in January, but the Republican president paused the ban. In June, Trump granted a 90-day extension for the app to secure a non-Chinese buyer or face prohibition.