Trump Looked at Banning Further Chinese Apps in Addition to TikTok

 US President Donald Trump has looked at banning additional Chinese-owned companies following his decision to ban the short-video app TikTok, White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows said on Monday.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Meadows said the administration was focused particularly on Chinese companies that collected personal data and could pose a national security risk.

"Most of what the president has looked at is banning other Chinese apps that might collect personal information and have potential national security risk," he said.

On Saturday, Trump said he could exert pressure on more Chinese companies such as technology giant Alibaba.

Trump, who has made changing the US-China trade relationship a central theme of his presidency, has been sharply critical of Chinese-owned companies over national security concerns. Under a Chinese law introduced in 2017, companies have an obligation to support and cooperate in China's national intelligence work.

The Trump administration has also ordered TikTok's Chinese owner ByteDance to divest its US operations within 90 days.

© Thomson Reuters 2020

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