Religious Freedom Advocates Urge Trump to Address China Persecution at Summit

U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are set to meet in Washington on September 24 to discuss trade, technology, and geopolitical tensions. As the summit approaches, religious freedom advocates are calling on the administration to prioritize the issue of religious persecution in China during these high-level negotiations.

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) and the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) have specifically requested that the U.S. government advocate for the release of detained religious leaders. Among those highlighted are eight leaders from Beijing’s Zion Church, including Wang Lin, Yin Huibin, and Elder Wang Zhong, who remain in custody following a 2025 government crackdown on unregistered Protestant congregations.

While Zion Church founder Pastor Ezra Jin Mingri was released and relocated to the United States in July following previous diplomatic intervention, advocates emphasize that the broader campaign against independent churches continues. Organizations are urging the administration to ensure that human rights and religious liberty remain central to the bilateral discussions alongside economic and trade concerns.