On Monday, September 15, 2025, after the economic and trade talks in Madrid, US Treasury Secretary Benson revealed that during the negotiations related to TikTok, China put forward a long list of demands to the US, including reducing tariffs, in exchange for Beijing’s agreement to the sale of TikTok. However, the US issued warnings of closing TikTok, forcing China to abandon the idea of significant concessions to the US and ultimately reaching a framework agreement on TikTok.
Benson told the media after the US-China negotiations that this framework agreement would allow TikTok to continue operating in the US, but ownership of TikTok’s US business would be transferred to US control. He also mentioned that the framework agreement reached by the delegations from both sides would need final approval from the leaders of the US and China, with Trump and Xi Jinping scheduled to have a call on Friday to finalize the agreement.
In Madrid, the US Treasury Secretary revealed more details of the negotiation process in interviews with Reuters and Bloomberg. He stated that the Chinese negotiating team came to the talks with a long list of demands for “compensation” to reach an agreement on TikTok, including the withdrawal of the latest tariffs imposed by Trump, the US tariffs imposed on China in the past, and the US technology export controls on China.
“They did not correctly assess or understand President Trump’s willingness to have TikTok removed from the platform,” Benson said. “I believe we changed their mindset.”
Benson stated, “With the negotiating chips provided by President Trump to Ambassador Greer and me, we were able to dispel the idea that China expected significant concessions from us.”
President Trump had previously warned on Sunday that the US might end TikTok depending on China, as negotiations were ongoing between the US and China regarding TikTok.
Benson mentioned that the US did not agree to cancel existing tariffs and trade policies in the negotiations but rather agreed not to take certain measures in the future.
“So essentially, what they (China) got was a commitment to things that will not happen, rather than canceling certain measures,” Benson said.
He declined to disclose specific concessions regarding TikTok and refused to discuss the commercial terms of the agreement or the handling of TikTok’s core algorithm but noted that the US was quite satisfied with the agreement in addressing US national security concerns.
According to Reuters, a source familiar with the negotiations in Madrid stated that another factor convincing China was the message sent by the US team that if a TikTok framework agreement could not be reached in Madrid, a meeting between Trump and CCP leader Xi Jinping scheduled for this fall might not materialize.
Benson stated that the commercial terms of the agreement would safeguard US national security interests and the “Chinese characteristics” of TikTok. He also added that the next round of US-China negotiations might take place before the deadline for the 90-day tariff truce on November 10, possibly extending the truce period once again.
The US and China teams held four meetings in four different cities in Europe. Benson cautiously stated on Monday, “We are moving towards a certain goal, but the final outcome is still uncertain.”