Vatican suppresses two Chinese dioceses and erects new see in Zhangjiakou

The Holy See has announced the suppression of two historic dioceses in northern China and the erection of a new ecclesiastical territory in their place.

The decision, initially approved by Pope Leo XIV on 8 July 2025, has prompted criticism from some observers who see it as a concession to the Chinese Communist Party.

In a decree issued from Rome, the dioceses of Xiwanzi and Xuanhua, both created in 1946 by Pope Pius XII, were formally suppressed. Their territories have now been merged into the newly erected Diocese of Zhangjiakou, a suffragan see of the Archdiocese of Beijing.