​​​​​​​ISTANBUL

President Donald Trump announced Friday that he extended the deadline for TikTok's forced sale by 75 days, allowing the popular social media platform to continue operating in the US while negotiations continue.

"My Administration has been working very hard on a Deal to SAVE TIKTOK, and we have made tremendous progress," Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Trump explained the extension as necessary to finalize required approvals. "The Deal requires more work to ensure all necessary approvals are signed, which is why I am signing an Executive Order to keep TikTok up and running for an additional 75 days," he said.

The president said the US does “not want TikTok to 'go dark,'" adding Washington is looking to work with TikTok and Beijing "to close the Deal."

The original April 5 deadline would have forced ByteDance, TikTok's Chinese parent company, to divest from the platform or face a ban in the US.

Trump had earlier indicated flexibility regarding the deadline, telling reporters Monday: "I can extend (it) if I want."

TikTok's future has remained uncertain since legislation signed by former President Joe Biden required ByteDance to sell the platform or face a ban. The law was upheld by the US Supreme Court despite TikTok's legal challenge.

The platform, which boasts 170 million American users, briefly went offline before Trump's inauguration in January but resumed service after he signaled a willingness to reconsider the ban.

Several US companies, including Amazon, have made bids to acquire TikTok, according to media reports.