WASHINGTON—China’s religious freedom violations and its growing influence and activities beyond its borders were “the most troubling developments” of last year, according to an independent, bipartisan U.S. federal government commission. In its 2021 annual report released on April 21, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) called out China as one of the world’s “egregious violators” of religious freedom. The report stated that religious freedom conditions in China deteriorated further in 2020. This year’s report highlights not only Beijing’s abuses targeting its own people, but also its growing international influence on religious freedom and human rights. The commission found that Beijing’s economic and geopolitical influence overseas had negatively affected religious freedom and human rights in other countries. “Tactics include harassment, intimidation, and detainment of human rights activists, ethnic and religious minorities, and other critics and dissidents.” Countries including Turkey have yielded to Beijing’s pressure, silenced critics, and even repatriated Uyghur refugees …