US and China Reach ‘Framework Agreement’ on TikTok in Madrid

The latest round of negotiations between US and China kicked off in Madrid kicked off on 14 September 2025. Following two days of talks on 15 September 2025, both sides gave a press briefing separately on the status of the trade talks. It would appear that both sides have reached a ‘framework agreement’ on TikTok.

The American delegation was led by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, while the Chinese delegation was led by Vice-Premier HE Lifeng. This round of negotiations focused on TikTok as the deadline for its ban was set for 17 September 2025. Both delegations will stay in Madrid till that date for any further talks if necessary.

The #TikTok deal will have to be ticked off by US President Trump and Chinese President Xi and the two are believed to have a scheduled phone call on Friday 19 September 2025. The two leaders are also believe to be meeting in person but until some substantial breakthrough is reached, such a meeting might not materialize. Both leaders might be attending the APEC Summit which is taking place in South Korea at the end of October 2025.

From the press briefings, the US pressed for US ownership due to ‘national security’ concerns. On the other hand, China vowed to protect the ‘legitimate rights’ of its companies against ‘bullying tactics’ derived from weaponizing #tariffs. In the meantime, China has initiated an anti-monopoly probe on Nvidia while the US is pressuring China on its purchase of oil & gas. President Trump made a comment on the talks on his #TruthSocial account.

At this stage, the US entity which will acquire TikTok US has not been divulged. In the past, Oracle, Microsoft, Amazon, as well a handful of smaller players such as Perplexity AI, expressed interest. It is not also clear what China would be getting in exchange for the powerful #AI algorithm that has made TikTok so addictive.