Pope insists Vatican-China relations are on track but says more work is needed

Pope Francis insisted Monday that the Vatican's relations with China were going well but said work must still be done to show Beijing that the Catholic Church isn’t beholden to a foreign power. Francis spoke about the Holy See’s dealings with China during a press conference en route home from Mongolia, where Beijing and its crackdown on religious minorities overshadowed an otherwise historic first papal visit to the majority Buddhist nation. Francis sent a telegram of greetings to Chinese President Xi Jinping as his aircraft flew through China's airspace coming and going to Mongolia.