TikTok ban will further strain ties between Washington, China, analysts say

A ban on TikTok by the United States will further strain already deteriorating ties between Washington and Beijing, according to political analysts on Friday, as well as a ban on the Chinese-owned app, which is already in bad shape and will cause the bilateral relationship to be worse, according to Dr Chen Gang, assistant director of the East Asian Institute at the National University of Singapore NUS He told CNA that the US is ready for tougher measures on China's tech presence in its backyard.

The senior research fellow said that other Chinese platforms like WeChat or Alibaba may face a similar fate due to the same issues cited by US senators calling for the TikTok ban.

Assistant Professor Benjamin Ho of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies said that relations have been deteriorating and I m not sure we have seen the bottom yet.

The frenzy over TikTok reflects the American belief that time is not on their side when it comes to containing China. On Thursday, TikTok CEO Chew Shou Zi testified for over five hours before the US House Energy and Commerce Committee.

The Singaporean repeatedly denied that the video app shares data or has connections with the Chinese Communist Party, and argued that the platform was doing everything possible to ensure the safety of its 150 million American users.

Associate professor Chong Ja Ian, from the NUS department of political science, said the question is whether the PRC People's Republic of China wants to back a single firm.

He noted that there seemed to be little trust in TikTok's assurances over securing user data after Mr Chew s testimony.

Ahead of the congressional hearing, China's commerce ministry said that a possible US plan to force a TikTok sale would seriously damage the confidence of investors from all over the world and Beijing would oppose any such move.

These comments were made during Mr. Chew's testimony as proof that TikTok could not be separated from the Chinese government.

On Friday, Beijing also said it attaches great importance to protecting data privacy. China has never and will not require companies or individuals to collect or provide data in a foreign country, according to foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning.