Just a few months ago, it seemed unlikely that the U.S. government would force ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns TikTok, to sell it. The platform is popular, and Congress rarely passes legislation aimed at a single company. If ByteDance does not sell TikTok within 12 months, it will be banned in the United States. TikTok is also owned by a company based in the leading global rival of the United States. And that rival, especially under President Xi Jinping, treats private companies as extensions of the state.

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Persons: TikTok, ByteDance, Biden, Xi Jinping, ” Christopher Wray Locations: Ukraine, Taiwan, Israel, United States