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Customs authorities in China in eastern Shandong province have confiscated 60,000 maps that "incorrectly labeled" the self-governed island of Taiwan, which Chinese authorities considers part of its territory.

The maps, officials stated, also "failed to include important islands" in the disputed South China Sea waters, where China's territorial assertions clash with those of its regional neighbors, including the Philippines and Vietnamese authorities.

The "problematic" maps, destined for overseas markets, cannot be sold because they "threaten national unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity" of the People's Republic of China, officials confirmed.

Cartographic materials are a sensitive topic for China and its rivals for coral formations, islands and outcrops in the South China Sea.

Specific Compliance Issues

Customs authorities stated that the maps also omitted the nine-dash boundary, which outlines Beijing's claim over almost the whole South China Sea.

The demarcation includes nine lines which extends hundreds of miles south and east from its most southerly province of Hainan.

The intercepted cartographic items also failed to indicate the maritime boundary between mainland China and the Japanese archipelago, customs representatives stated.

Cross-Strait Status

Customs representatives explained the maps improperly identified "the Taiwan region", without clarifying what exactly the incorrect labeling was.

China sees self-governed Taiwan as its territory and has kept open the possibility of the use of force to take the island. But Taiwanese authorities considers itself distinct from the Chinese mainland, with its own constitution and popularly chosen officials.

Regional Tensions

Conflicts in the disputed maritime region flare up occasionally - just recently over the weekend, when ships from Chinese authorities and the Philippine government were involved in another confrontation.

Manila alleged a Chinese vessel of purposefully hitting and deploying water jets at a official Philippine ship.

But Chinese officials stated the incident happened after the Philippine ship disregarded multiple alerts and "came too close to" the Chinese ship.

Historical Precedents

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

The 2023 Barbie film from last year was banned in the Vietnamese market and modified in the Philippines for depicting a South China Sea map with the nine dash line.

The statement from China Customs did not specify where the seized maps were planned for distribution. The country provides much of the world's goods, from holiday decorations to office supplies.

The confiscation of "problematic maps" by Chinese customs officers is not uncommon - though the number of the maps seized in the Shandong region easily eclipses previous confiscations. Products that fail inspection at the customs are destroyed.

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

In late summer, border authorities in Hebei province confiscated two "violating cartographic materials" that, among other things, featured a "misdrawing" of the the Tibet region's limits.