Check how many C++ samples exist on the Windows 10 SDK samples.
See the blog about the new Windows UI Composition engine and which languages are being used on the demos.
Then let us know where is this active encouragement you are speaking about.
C++ is being driven down the stack as the implementation language for the UWP COM layer, kernel programming, graphics and audio.
Everything else is .NET Native.
See the talks at CppCon 2016:
Since October 2016 there is radio silence on the actual state of C++/WinRT, including the status of feature parity with C++/CX for XAML, Blend and creation of UWP components.
VS 2017 already had two releases since those presentations.
The only Microsoft talk at CppCon 2017 are about VS Code support for C++ and ANSI C++ compliance, nothing relevant to actual Windows 10 application development.
Any long time Windows developer is recognising the signs that UWP is turning into what Longhorn aspired to be, just remains to be seen how willing Microsoft is to keep pushing it.
Microsoft is actively encouraging developers to use C++ for development on Windows. The phase when Microsoft was trying to push (or as you call it "bully") developers into ".net for everything" is long gone.