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Chinese customs officers in eastern Shandong province have seized 60,000 maps that "incorrectly labeled" the self-governed island of Taiwan, which Chinese authorities claims as part of its territory.

The maps, officials stated, also "omitted important islands" in the South China Sea, where Beijing's claims overlap with those of its regional neighbors, including the Philippine government and Vietnam.

The "non-compliant" maps, meant for export, cannot be sold because they "threaten national unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity" of the People's Republic of China, customs representatives stated.

Maps are a sensitive topic for Chinese authorities and its rivals for coral formations, maritime features and outcrops in the South China Sea.

Detailed Compliance Issues

Customs authorities stated that the maps also did not contain the nine-dash boundary, which outlines China's territorial assertion over the vast majority of the South China Sea.

The demarcation includes nine lines which stretches numerous nautical miles southeastward from its most southerly province of Hainan Island.

The intercepted cartographic items also did not mark the oceanic demarcation between mainland China and the Japanese archipelago, authorities said.

Cross-Strait Situation

Customs representatives explained the maps mislabelled "the Taiwan region", without specifying what exactly the incorrect labeling was.

China sees self-governed Taiwan as its sovereign land and has not ruled out the use of military action to unify with the island. But Taiwan considers itself distinct from the mainland China, with its own constitution and popularly chosen officials.

Geopolitical Disputes

Conflicts in the South China Sea periodically escalate - in recent days over the weekend, when maritime craft from China and the Philippine government participated in another encounter.

Manila accused a Chinese vessel of purposefully hitting and using water cannons at a official Philippine ship.

But Chinese officials stated the confrontation happened after the Philippine vessel failed to heed continual notices and "moved perilously near" the China's maritime craft.

Historical Precedents

The Philippine government and Vietnamese authorities are also particularly sensitive to representations of the disputed maritime region in cartographic materials.

The 2023 Barbie film from last year was banned in Vietnam and edited in the Philippine release for showing a South China Sea map with the controversial demarcation.

The announcement from China Customs did not specify where the seized maps were destined for sale. The country produces much of the world's goods, from Christmas lights to office supplies.

The interception of "violating charts" by Chinese customs officers is frequently occurring - though the quantity of the maps confiscated in the Shandong region significantly exceeds past seizures. Goods that are non-compliant at the customs are destroyed.

In spring, border authorities at an air transportation hub in the coastal city intercepted a shipment of one hundred forty-three navigation charts that featured "apparent inaccuracies" in the sovereign limits.

In late summer, border authorities in the northern province seized a pair of "problematic maps" that, in addition to other issues, included a "incorrect depiction" of the Tibetan border.