The Chinese government is secretly lobbying members of Congress against legislation that would force the sale of the video app TikTok or ban it in the US, according to Capitol Hill staffers.
Chinese diplomats from the embassy have met with congressional offices to advocate on behalf of TikTok after a bill passed the House in March.
The staffers said the embassy did not initially mention TikTok in seeking meetings.
The bill would ban TikTok unless its Chinese parent company ByteDance sells it within six months due to national security concerns given ByteDance is beholden to the Chinese Communist Party.
Former TikTok employees also said the app has continued working with ByteDance despite claims of separating US user data from China-based executives.
The lobbying efforts underscore the ongoing tensions surrounding TikTok’s ties to China.