TOKYO — U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday that he could sign the final agreement on TikTok as early as Thursday, adding that he has received a “provisional approval” from Chinese President Xi Jinping ahead of their expected meeting later this week in South Korea.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One en route from Malaysia to Japan during his ongoing Asia tour, Trump said discussions surrounding the Chinese-owned social media app were progressing quickly. The deal, he indicated, would finalize terms designed to address U.S. security concerns over TikTok’s data handling and ownership structure.
Trump’s remarks come amid intensified negotiations between U.S. regulators and TikTok’s Chinese parent company ByteDance, following months of political pressure to either sell or restructure the platform’s U.S. operations.
The president also made fresh comments on trade tensions with Canada, accusing Ottawa of exploiting U.S. markets. “Canada has been ripping us off for a long time, and they’re not going to do it anymore,” Trump said, adding that he does “not want to meet with the Canadian Prime Minister” during his trip.
Trump is currently on a three-nation Asia tour, with scheduled stops in Japan and South Korea, where he is expected to meet Xi Jinping for talks on trade, technology, and regional security issues.