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Customs authorities in China in the coastal province of Shandong have seized 60,000 maps that "mislabelled" the self-ruled island of Taiwan, which Beijing considers part of its sovereign land.

The maps, customs representatives explained, also "omitted important islands" in the South China Sea, where China's territorial assertions conflict with those of its regional neighbors, including the Philippine government and Vietnam.

The "non-compliant" maps, c intended for foreign distribution, cannot be sold because they "endanger national unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity" of China, authorities said.

Maps are a contentious issue for Chinese authorities and its rivals for coral formations, islands and outcrops in the South China Sea.

Specific Violations

China Customs explained that the maps also did not contain the nine-dash boundary, which outlines Beijing's claim over almost the whole South China Sea.

The boundary consists of nine dashes which runs hundreds of miles southeastward from its most southerly province of Hainan.

The seized maps also failed to indicate the maritime boundary between mainland China and Japan, authorities said.

Taiwan Status

Officials stated the maps improperly identified "Taiwan province", without clarifying what exactly the incorrect labeling was.

China views self-ruled Taiwan as its territory and has maintained the option of the use of force to unify with the island. But Taiwan views itself as separate from the Chinese mainland, with its own governing document and popularly chosen officials.

Regional Disputes

Conflicts in the South China Sea periodically escalate - just recently over the weekend, when maritime craft from Chinese authorities and the Philippine government figured in another confrontation.

Manila alleged a China's maritime craft of purposefully hitting and deploying water jets at a government-owned Philippine craft.

But Chinese officials said the encounter happened after the Philippine ship ignored repeated warnings and "moved perilously near" the China's maritime craft.

Previous Similar Cases

The Philippine government and Vietnamese authorities are also highly vigilant to depictions of the disputed maritime region in cartographic materials.

The Barbie movie from 2023 was banned in Vietnam and modified in the Philippine release for displaying a South China Sea map with the nine-segment boundary.

The declaration from China Customs did not specify where the seized maps were intended to be sold. China supplies much of the world's goods, from holiday decorations to stationery.

The interception of "problematic maps" by China's border authorities is relatively common - though the number of the maps seized in Shandong substantially surpasses previous confiscations. Goods that do not meet standards at the border control are destroyed.

In March, border authorities at an airport in the coastal city confiscated a batch of one hundred forty-three marine maps that featured "clear mistakes" in the national borders.

In late summer, customs officers in the northern province intercepted a pair of "violating cartographic materials" that, among other things, included a "improper representation" of the the Tibet region's limits.