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Trump meets TikTok CEO after saying China, US can ‘solve all world’s problems’ together

President-elect said the two countries can work together when pressed about his invitation to the Chinese leader to attend inauguration

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Xi Jinping and Donald Trump shake hands in November 2017 outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Photo: TNS
Khushboo Razdanin Washington

US president-elect Donald Trump said on Monday that Beijing and Washington could work together “to solve all of the problems of the world”, a sweeping statement issued a little more than a month before he returns to office.

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Hours after making the remarks in a press conference at Mar-a-Lago, Trump met TikTok CEO Chew Shou Zi at the Florida resort, according to US media reports.

The meeting coincided with the company’s emergency appeal to the US Supreme Court for a temporary halt on the ban, which would take effect if it fails to secure a non-Chinese buyer on January 19, a day before Trump officially takes the White House.

Earlier in the day, Trump signalled during a news conference that he was willing to block the ban on TikTok, which has more than 170 million domestic monthly users on its platform in the US.

“We’ll take a look at TikTok. You know, I have a warm spot in my heart for TikTok. TikTok had an impact, so we’re taking a look at it,” he said, hailing the platform for boosting his connection with young American voters during the campaign.

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Both Trump and the social media platform kept the meeting low-key, with neither side confirming the meeting, nor issuing any statement on what was discussed. Media reports from the US said it was not clear what the two men talked about.

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