Geo-Strategic Trend

Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) held its 77th advisory committee meeting, focused on Beijing’s suppression of religious freedom and its use of religious exchanges as a tool for political influence operations targeting Taiwan.

Scholars at the meeting reported that China’s recent religious policies have trended toward “Sinicization” and tighter administrative control. Regulations such as rules governing the online behavior of religious clergy have further restricted religious freedom. Beijing continues to use religion as an influence channel, drawing Taiwanese to the mainland through temple pilgrimages, tourism, forums, institutional visits, and cultural performances.

Advisory members stressed that despite being an officially atheist state with no genuine religious freedom, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has long exploited religious and ethnic issues for social control. Cross-strait religious exchange, members argued, is in practice an instrument of political influence operations against Taiwan. The CCP systematically uses imagery of “ancestral temples” and “shared roots across the strait” to erode Taiwan’s religious and cultural autonomy.

The committee warned that the CCP uses these exchanges to build grassroots networks within Taiwan’s temple communities, establishing personal ties that can later be leveraged for infiltration. Members urged the government to screen applications from mainland Chinese individuals seeking to participate in religious exchange, and to intervene when activities exceed religious boundaries, ensuring that cross-strait religious exchange remains healthy and orderly.

Members also cautioned that the risks to Taiwanese citizens traveling to China for religious purposes are increasing, citing the detention of Taiwanese followers of Yiguandao on the mainland as an example of the legal uncertainty posed by Chinese religious regulations.

The Ministry of the Interior, which oversees religious affairs, attended the meeting and advised religious groups to register travel plans on its dedicated information portal before visiting China, enabling the government to provide assistance if needed.

Source: Central News Agency (Taiwan), May 6, 2026
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202605060331.aspx

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Emmanuel Bonne, French President Macron’s diplomatic adviser, in Beijing on May 8, calling for strengthened strategic communication and coordination between the two countries to jointly address global challenges. Bonne, in turn, expressed France’s willingness to play an active role in promoting dialogue and cooperation between Europe and China.

Wang Yi noted that Macron’s visit to China last year demonstrated the high level and special nature of the bilateral relationship, and said China hopes to work with France to achieve greater progress in cooperation and bring more benefits to both peoples.

Wang Yi emphasized that in a world increasingly marked by disorder, China and France — as permanent members of the UN Security Council and independently minded major powers — bear significant responsibility for maintaining international peace, stability, and development. He called on both sides to strengthen strategic communication and coordination, push their comprehensive strategic partnership forward free from interference, and ensure its healthy and stable development.

Wang Yi also reiterated that the foundation of China-France relations rests on firm political mutual trust and mutual respect for each other’s core interests. He urged France to uphold the one-China principle in practice, refrain from any form of official exchanges with Taiwan’s authorities, and avoid sending any wrong signals to pro-independence forces.

Bonne affirmed that France fully understands the importance and sensitivity of the Taiwan issue, adheres to the one-China policy, and that this position will not change. He also stressed that under the current international situation, dialogue and cooperation between Europe and China are essential, and that the EU needs China as a trustworthy partner. France, he said, is willing to play a constructive role in advancing that relationship.

The two officials have spoken by phone twice previously this year — once in January to discuss global instability, and again in March to address the situation in the Middle East.

Source: Central News Agency (Taiwan), May 9, 2026
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202605090114.aspx

Japanese tourism to China has plummeted by as much as 90% following a sharp deterioration in Sino-Japanese relations triggered by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remarks about a potential “Taiwan contingency.” The fallout has unleashed a triple blow on the travel industry: a dramatic reduction in flights, a sharp cooling of travel demand, and rising fuel costs driven by instability in the Middle East.

According to a report by Kyodo News, approximately 2,691 flights from China to Japan were cancelled in March alone, representing a cancellation rate of around 50 percent. One major Japanese travel agency reported that tour group cancellations to Shanghai surged to 50 percent after Takaichi’s comments in November last year, with the number of Japanese visitors to Shanghai falling 70 percent year-on-year by late last year.

Safety concerns have compounded the diplomatic chill. The 2024 stabbing attack on a school bus carrying students at a Japanese school in Suzhou, and the death of a Japanese schoolboy near a Japanese school in Shenzhen, have made many Japanese travelers wary of visiting China. The Chinese government also urged its citizens to avoid traveling to Japan in response to Takaichi’s statements, further straining bilateral tourism flows.

The collapse in visitor numbers has devastated Chinese tour guides who specialize in Japanese-speaking tourists. A guide in Xi’an with nearly 30 years of experience said he has not received a single Japanese client this year, while a Beijing-based guide reported that his income has fallen by 90 percent since March.

Industry insiders are pessimistic about a near-term recovery. Japan was once one of China’s top sources of inbound tourists, but experts warn that “as long as China-Japan relations do not improve and flight numbers do not increase, the Japanese tourism market to China will be difficult to recover in the short term.”

Source: Central News Agency (Taiwan), May 1, 2026
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202605010096.aspx