China allowed the pope to travel through the country's airspace for the first time since 1989, but Chinese officials weren't so accommodating for their own citizens.
Officials blocked young Chinese Catholics from traveling to South Korea for Pope Francis' five-day visit on Thursday, according to The Washington Post. Reports of the travel freeze came shortly after the pope had sent Chinese President Xi Jinping a telegram.
"I extend my best wishes to your excellency and your fellow citizens, and I invoke divine blessings of peace and well-being upon the nation," Pope Francis wrote to Xi on his way to Seoul. The message was seen as a possible sign of reconciliation between the two sides.
More than 100 Chinese Catholics had planned to attend the Asian Youth Day Mass in Daejeon on Friday, but some of the Chinese youths were detained, an unnamed organizer told Reuters.
China and the Vatican have had a strained relationship since the country's Communist takeover in 1949. The government rejects papal authority over Chinese Catholics and do not share a diplomatic relationship, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Relationship between the two powers have hit an all-time-low in recent years, according to The Washington Post. China has stepped up its surveillance and detention of worshipers still practicing in illegal churches and who remain loyal to the pope.
"We are willing to keep working hard with the Vatican to carry out constructive dialogue and push for the improvement of bilateral ties," the Chinese Ministry told Reuters. They did not address the detention of the Chinese Catholic participants.
Pope Francis made his first trip to Asia as the pontiff and the first trip by a pope in 15 years (John Paul II visited India in 1999). "The pope is going there to address the entire continent, not just Korea," the Vatican's secretary of state told the Holy See's television network.
North Korea gave its own reception to the pope's visit across the border. The Communist country test fired three short-range missiles off the east coast just as the pope's plane entered South Korean airspace in the west.
