Trump signals possible 90-day extension for TikTok ban

​​​​​​​By Gizem Nisa Cebi

ISTANBUL (AA) - US President-elect Donald Trump indicated Saturday that he is "most likely" to grant TikTok a 90-day extension to comply with US law requiring ByteDance, its Chinese parent company, to sell its US operations.

"The 90-day extension is something that will be most likely done, because it’s appropriate. If I decide to do that, I’ll probably announce it on Monday," Trump said in a telephone interview with NBC News.

The law, enacted last year, mandates ByteDance divest TikTok by Jan. 19 or face a ban. While the Biden administration has deferred enforcement, TikTok warned it may shut down operations without "clarity and assurance" from US officials.

White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre called TikTok’s concerns a "stunt" in a statement early Saturday, emphasizing that any decisions now fall to the incoming administration.

The comments mark a shift from Trump’s earlier efforts to ban TikTok, reflecting evolving views amid concerns about ByteDance’s ties to the Chinese government. The Supreme Court upheld the ban on Friday, and Trump pledged to decide TikTok’s future "in the not-too-distant future."

As the deadline approaches, TikTok’s availability to over 170 million US users remains uncertain.