Trump says he is 'most likely' to grant TikTok a 90-day extension to save itself from US ban

Days before assuming the Oval Office, US President Donald Trump said that he is “most likely” to grant a 90-day extension to the popular video-sharing app Tiktok so that they can save themselves from a ban in the United States. In an interview with NBC News, Trump said on Saturday that he is considering extending the Sunday deadline laid down for ByteDance to sell TikTok to a non-Chinese-buyer or face a ban under US law.

“I think that would be, certainly, an option that we look at. The 90-day extension is something that will be most likely done because it’s appropriate. You know, it’s appropriate. We have to look at it carefully. It’s a very big situation,” Trump said in a phone interview. “If I decide to do that, I’ll probably announce it on Monday,” he furthered.

The remarks from Trump came after outgoing US President Joe Biden’s administration maintained that they were passing over the responsibility to implement the law to the incoming Trump administration. In the midst of the ongoing political struggle, TikTok has said that it will “go dark” on Sunday, appealing for greater “clarity and assurance” so that US tech hosts of the service would not be in legal jeopardy.

Biden administration accuses TikTok of pulling ‘a stunt’

Outgoing White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre called TikTok’s plans to go dark “a stunt” in a statement on Saturday morning. “We have seen the most recent statement from TikTok. It is a stunt, and we see no reason for TikTok or other companies to take actions in the next few days before the Trump administration takes office on Monday,” she said.

“We have laid out our position clearly and straightforwardly: actions to implement this law will fall to the next administration. So TikTok and other companies should take up any concerns with them,” she furthered.

It is pertinent to note that under US law, the president can grant the app a deadline extension if he certifies that there is a path to divestiture or a “significant progress” has been made in this regard. After the US Supreme Court upheld the law and rejected TikTok’s appeal, the ball is in Trump’s court to save the app from getting banned.

In his last ditch effort TikTok’s CEO, Shou Chew, who is slated to attend Trump’s inauguration on Monday, posted a video praising Trump’s support. “I want to thank President Trump for his commitment to work with us to find a solution that keeps TikTok available in the United States,” he said. “This is a strong stand for the First Amendment and against arbitrary censorship," he concluded.

With inputs from agencies.