Washington’s Ultimatum Looms as TikTok Sell-Off Deadline Approaches—Again
Adshine.pro12/02/202510 views
It’s starting to feel like a political version of Groundhog Day for TikTok in the U.S., as the platform approaches yet another looming deadline—its fourth extension—to be sold to a U.S.-based buyer or be forced out of the country entirely. That deadline, once again, is set for December 16.
And despite the White House publicly backing a TikTok sell-off plan and assuring Americans that the app would remain operational—with this latest extension framed as a final procedural step—there’s still been no confirmation of any approved sale. The holdup, as before, lies with Beijing, which has yet to sign off on any transfer of ownership.
As a result, Americans are once again staring down the possibility that TikTok may disappear in a matter of weeks. Or, just as plausibly, President Trump may issue yet another extension, citing ongoing negotiations and an imminent deal.
Whether a deal is actually close, however, is difficult to gauge. By the U.S. negotiators’ own admission, they have no clarity on how the Chinese government intends to rule on a forced divestment.
Back in October, optimism spiked after U.S. officials met with Chinese trade representatives in Kuala Lumpur. Following those talks, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confidently declared:
“We finalized the TikTok agreement in terms of getting Chinese approval, and I would expect that would go forward in the coming weeks and months, and we’ll finally see a resolution to that.”
But that approval never came. Chinese state media later stated that officials had agreed to “appropriately address issues related to TikTok,” while also making it clear that broader U.S.-China trade concerns would need to be resolved alongside any decision.
In other words, Beijing may be willing to talk—but nothing indicates it’s prepared to approve the sale of a major Chinese tech asset to an American company without receiving significant concessions.
What those concessions might be remains unclear. Some reports have suggested the CCP is seeking Trump’s support for China’s claim over Taiwan—an issue the U.S. has historically rejected in favor of Taiwan’s autonomy. More recently, Chinese officials have voiced frustration with America’s new trade deals with Malaysia and Cambodia, both of which contain language encouraging alignment with Washington on national security issues such as export controls, investment screening, and sanctions.
These are precisely the types of commitments Beijing has long pushed back against. And it’s very possible that any TikTok deal would be tied into this broader matrix of geopolitical bargaining.
Whether the U.S. will meet those conditions is hard to predict. But when President Trump held a media event in October declaring he had “saved TikTok,” he certainly projected confidence that an agreement was on its way.
The question now is: how long is he willing to wait?
Securing TikTok’s future would undoubtedly give Trump a public-relations boost, offering a way to appeal to younger voters by positioning himself as the one who kept their favorite app alive. Beijing is undoubtedly aware of the political leverage this gives the White House—which may explain why Chinese officials appear in no hurry, using time as a negotiating tool to extract maximum concessions.
Either way, prepare for TikTok to dominate headlines once again. The next two weeks will determine whether the app is sold, banned, or granted yet another reprieve through executive order.
The clock is ticking—again.
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