KUWAIT — TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer quit the Chinese-owned video app from on Thursday just days after the company mounted a legal challenge against US President Donald Trump’s executive order to ban transactions with the popular platform.

“In recent weeks, as the political environment has sharply changed, I have done significant reflection on what the corporate structural changes will require, and what it means for the global role I signed up for,” Chinese state television quoted Mayer as saying.

Mayer, who assumed the role only three months ago, will be replaced temporarily by the short video app firm’s US-based General Manager Vanessa Pappas, the company said in a statement.

TikTok is scrambling to persuade Washington and New Delhi that it does not pose a security threat, while simultaneously trying to woo potential buyers.

A large hit among millennials and teenagers, US officials are concerned that information on the app’s users could be shared with the Chinese government, prompting Trump to ban the platform the US. — KUNA