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After the US Government expressed their wish to ban TikTok, China’s Foreign Ministry reportedly slammed them, warning that the proposed ban would “come back to bite” the country. The statement came after US officials expressed their concern and stated that the short video sharing application could allegedly pose a national security risk.
China held a meeting on Wednesday, March 13, 2024, and stated that the US alone has over 170 million users on the application. The Chinese government then stated that banning the app is “an act of bullying,” and can “backfire on America.” Wang Wenbin, a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry said:
“Even though the US has not found evidence on how TikTok endangers its national security, it has never stopped going after TikTok. This practice of resorting to hegemonic moves when one cannot succeed in fair competition disrupts normal operations of businesses.”
The spokesperson also warned lawmakers and said:
“The decision undermines international investors' confidence in the investment environment, and sabotages the normal international economic and trade order. This will eventually backfire on the US itself.”
Details revealed as China expresses concern over ban of TikTok in the US
The fiasco concerning the platform has been developing for a long time now, as many American lawmakers have been expressing their concern about the short video sharing application and claiming that its parent, ByteDance, could be sharing US users' data with China.
Reports indicate that the US government has also allegedly expressed that the app could potentially be spreading propaganda to influence the citizens of the US.
The popular short video sharing application has become a major issue for the US government. Due to the same, a bill was proposed in US legislation, which stated that TikTok should separate from its parent company, ByteDance, otherwise, the application would be removed from the app store.
Wisconsin Republican Rep. Mike Gallagher spoke up about the same and said:
“It’s not a ban. It puts the choice squarely in the hands of TikTok to sever their relationship with the Chinese Communist Party. As long as ByteDance no longer owns the company, TikTok can continue to survive … the basic ownership structure has to change.”
BBC also reported that in the last week, the short video sharing application also distributed a message to many US users, which stated and urged them to call their representatives to stop the government from banning the application.
In turn, the House China Select Committee then issued a letter asking the company to:
“stop spreading false claims in its campaign to manipulate and mobilise American citizens on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party.”
While the house vote remained 352 to 65, with 50 democrats and 15 republicans voting in opposition, however, it is not yet clear as to what would be the future of the bill once it reaches the Senate. On the other hand, the short video sharing application has denied and claimed that it does not have any links with the Chinese government.
