China Brands Trump’s Demands on TikTok Sale a ‘Smash and Grab’
- China Daily calls a forced sale officially sanctioned theft
- Editorial represents strongest defense yet of ByteDance
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China’s state-run media has struck back in the war over TikTok, branding U.S. demands for the sale of the social media app’s American operations to Microsoft Corp. as “theft” and suggesting Beijing may block the transaction.
The editorial, published late Monday by the China Daily newspaper, represented Beijing’s strongest defense yet of ByteDance Ltd. and its viral video app. “China will by no means accept the ‘theft’ of a Chinese technology company, and it has plenty of ways to respond if the administration carries out its planned smash and grab,” it said.