U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday expressed his support for a proposed deal by Chinese smartphone app TikTok to cooperate with American tech giant Oracle.
Last weekend, Bytedance filed a proposal with the U.S. administration to make Oracle, an American multinational computer technology corporation headquartered in California, its technology partner in the country to resolve "security concerns." Bytedance said the proposal does not involve the selling of its business and technology.
Trump told a press briefing at the White House that he approved the deal "in concept" and has given the deal his blessing.
TikTok is a video-sharing, music and social networking service owned by ByteDance and specializes in user-made short videos.
Trump and some U.S. politicians have repeatedly speculated that TikTok poses a national security threat because it is owned by a Chinese company, though no evidence has been provided to support those allegations.
On Aug 6, Trump issued executive orders banning U.S. transactions with TikTok and WeChat, citing the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). The ban is set to take effect on Sept. 20.
TikTok has sued the Trump administration to block the order, arguing it is unconstitutional. Trump, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross and the Department of Commerce were listed as defendants in the 39-page indictment.
On Aug 14, Trump signed a second executive order that would force ByteDance to sell or spin off its U.S. TikTok business within 90 days.
Oracle confirmed on Sept 14 that it reached a deal with ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, to become its "trusted technology provider," but the deal is subject to approval by the U. S. government.