The U.S. government has banned American government personnel in China, as well as family members and contractors with security clearances, from any romantic or sexual relationships with Chinese citizens.

The order was announced as White House officials believed they were nearing a deal for the app’s operations to be spun off into a new company based in the U.S. and owned and operated by a majority of American investors, with China’s ByteDance maintaining a minority position, according to a person familiar with the matter.

US government tells staff in China not to have romantic ties with Chinese citizens - Secret directive reportedly prompted by pressure from Congress members concerned about espionage risks

China has so far successfully stalled the deal to stop that advantage from slipping out of its grasp. BlackRock originally wanted the deal finalized by April 2, however, China’s antitrust regulatory agency launched a probe into the proposed $23 billion sale by CK Hutchison, likely halting the deal in its tracks, if only temporarily.

The deal remains in limbo, hostage to the emerging trade war between the U.S. and China. On Friday, Trump said he is extending the deadline for TikTok to be banned or sold off by its Chinese-owned parent company, ByteDance.

Beijing fires back at Trump's latest tariffs with a matching 34% tax on all U.S. imports and tightened export controls on rare earth elements.

The Philippines said the detention of three Filipinos in China for alleged espionage may be in retaliation for Manila’s recent arrests of Chinese nationals accused of spying.

President Donald Trump announced on Friday that he will again postpone enforcement of the TikTok sale-or-ban law for 75 days. The delay comes after Trump’s tariff announcement derailed a deal that had been set to transfer control of the app’s US operations to American ownership,

The U.S. government implemented a new policy in January that bans government employees in China from having romantic or sexual relationships with Chinese citizens.