Pakistan(National Times)- Speaking aboard Air Force One, Trump told reporters, “The report is that we had a deal, pretty much for TikTok, not a deal, but pretty close, and then China changed the deal because of tariffs. If I gave a little cut in tariffs, they’d approve that deal in 15 minutes, which shows you the power of tariffs.” The Biden-era legislation, now being enforced under Trump’s renewed presidency, demands that TikTok either sever ties with its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, or face a nationwide ban. The app, boasting more than 170 million users in the US, has become a central point of contention in ongoing tech and trade tensions between Washington and Beijing. On Friday, Trump extended the deadline for TikTok to finalize a sale to a non-Chinese buyer by 75 days—just one day after increasing tariffs by 34 percent on all Chinese imports. While Trump insisted that a deal to secure TikTok’s future in the US was close and involved multiple investors, he offered limited specifics. ByteDance confirmed it was engaged in talks with US authorities and seeking a resolution, but said there were still “key matters” to address. The company stressed, “An agreement has not been executed” and any deal reached would still need “approval under Chinese law.”