He had told US companies to buy it: New statement from Trump regarding the TikTok ban

TikTok, which was banned in the US on January 19, was temporarily freed by Trump one day later. Emphasizing that TikTok would be banned again if it is not sold to a US firm, Trump stated that he could extend the period for which he suspended the ban on the Chinese social media application. TikTok has been re-added to the Google Play Store and App Store in the US.

Officials from Google and Apple made a statement regarding the return of the TikTok application to their platforms. The statement noted that the TikTok application, which had been removed from the Google Play Store and App Store due to the access restriction imposed on January 19, has returned to these platforms.

Despite the ban that came on January 19, people who already had the application installed on their phones continued to use TikTok thanks to Trump freeing the application one day later. On the other hand, those who had not downloaded TikTok could not access the application. With TikTok being re-added to these platforms, US users will be able to download the application to their phones again.

In his statement today, Trump indicated that the 75-day suspension of the law requiring TikTok to be banned if it is not sold to an American firm could be extended.

Following Trump's demand that TikTok be sold to a US firm, it was alleged that billionaire Elon Musk wanted to buy the application. Although Musk did not initially deny the rumors, he announced last week that despite 'liking' the application very much, he was not interested in buying it.

WHY WAS TIKTOK BANNED IN THE US?

TikTok was shut down in the US on January 19 in accordance with a law requiring it to be banned if it is not sold to an American firm. The application was reopened for access with a decree issued by Trump, who took office one day later. On his first day in office, Trump signed a decree instructing that the implementation of this law be suspended for 75 days.

Stating that he is not in favor of banning TikTok but demanding that 50 percent of it be transferred to a US company for the ban to be lifted, Trump said the following:

''We have the right to sell or shut down TikTok. We will decide on this. China's approval is also required, but I am sure they will give their approval. If they don't, we will impose tariffs on China.''

Since TikTok's parent company ByteDance is a firm registered in China, it is required by the country's laws to share the user data it holds with the Chinese state when necessary. The Trump administration needs to find a solution to the data security problem that is the reason for the decision in order to prevent the popular social media application from being shut down.