US House members make rare China visit amid trade, TikTok tensions

As the two countries tussle over TikTok, the ownership of the South China Sea social media platform, and military dynamics in the region, US lawmakers are making a rare trip to China.

The US House of Representatives met with Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Sunday at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, according to a report from the US media pool, and said they were hoping to “break the ice” as the superpowers worked to stabilize relations.

The leaders of the two nations, US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, called on Friday for a meeting. The two leaders made a phone call, which was their first in three months, but nothing was disclosed about TikTok, a well-known Chinese social media app with 170 million US users.

A new agreement, according to the White House on Saturday, would give US businesses control over TikTok’s algorithm, and US citizens would hold the majority of the board’s seats, or six out of seven, on the board that would oversee the app’s US operations.

The app’s algorithm dictates what users see, and US officials have frequently warned against Chinese authorities manipulating it.

However, Trump claimed to have been aware of “great American patriots”‘ intentions to purchase the app, which was supposed to be outlawed in the US in January. While his administration attempts to reach a deal with its owner, China’s ByteDance, to sell its US operations, the president has signed numerous orders to allow the app to continue operating.

According to Trump, “They are] the buyers] very smart technologically, and they will not allow anything bad to happen to TikTok.”

Oracle, a tech company owned by Larry Ellison, one of the richest people in the world and a Trump supporter, is one of the potential buyers.

In a Saturday Fox News interview, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that the Trump administration was “100 percent confident that a deal is done.”