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Chinese customs officers in eastern Shandong province have seized sixty thousand maps that "mislabelled" the self-ruled island of Taiwan, which Beijing considers part of its sovereign land.

The maps, authorities said, also "left out important islands" in the South China Sea, where Beijing's claims clash with those of its regional neighbors, including the Philippine government and Vietnam.

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

Maps are a delicate subject for Chinese authorities and its rivals for reefs, maritime features and outcrops in the disputed maritime region.

Detailed Compliance Issues

Customs authorities said that the maps also did not contain the nine-dash line, which outlines China's territorial assertion over almost the whole South China Sea.

The line comprises nine segments which extends a significant distance south and east from its southern province of Hainan Island.

The confiscated materials also failed to indicate the sea border between China and the Japanese archipelago, officials confirmed.

Cross-Strait Status

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

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

Geopolitical Disputes

Tensions in the disputed maritime region sometimes intensify - most recently over the weekend, when maritime craft from Chinese authorities and the Philippines figured in another encounter.

Manila accused a China's maritime craft of deliberately ramming and using water cannons at a Philippine government vessel.

But Beijing said the confrontation happened after the Philippine vessel ignored repeated warnings and "dangerously approached" the Chinese ship.

Historical Similar Cases

The Philippine government and Vietnam are also particularly sensitive to depictions of the South China Sea in cartographic materials.

The popular motion picture from 2023 was prohibited in the Vietnamese market and edited in the Philippines for displaying a South China Sea map with the controversial demarcation.

The declaration from China Customs did not indicate where the intercepted items were planned for distribution. China provides much of the world's goods, from Christmas lights to stationery.

The seizure of "problematic maps" by Chinese customs officers is not uncommon - though the number of the maps intercepted in the Shandong region substantially surpasses past seizures. Goods that are non-compliant at the border control are eliminated.

In March, customs officers at an airport in Qingdao intercepted a shipment of one hundred forty-three nautical charts that contained "apparent inaccuracies" in the territorial boundaries.

In August, border authorities in the northern province intercepted a pair of "violating cartographic materials" that, among other things, included a "improper representation" of the Tibet's boundaries.