🔗 Share this article

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

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

The "problematic" maps, c intended for foreign distribution, cannot be sold because they "compromise national unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity" of China, officials confirmed.

Cartographic materials are a sensitive topic for China and its regional competitors for reefs, maritime features and rock formations in the South China Sea.

Specific Compliance Issues

China Customs said that the maps also omitted the nine-dash line, which demarcates China's territorial assertion over the vast majority of the South China Sea.

The line comprises nine segments which runs hundreds of miles south and east from its most southerly province of Hainan.

The confiscated materials also failed to indicate the maritime boundary between China and the Japanese archipelago, authorities said.

Taiwan Situation

Officials stated the maps incorrectly labeled "Taiwan province", without specifying what exactly the mislabelling was.

The Chinese government considers self-ruled Taiwan as its sovereign land and has maintained the option of the use of military action to unify with the island. But Taiwanese authorities views itself as distinct from the Chinese mainland, with its own governing document and elected leadership.

Regional Tensions

Conflicts in the South China Sea periodically escalate - most recently over the weekend, when ships from China and the Philippine government participated in another incident.

Philippine authorities accused a Chinese ship of intentionally colliding with and using water cannons at a Philippine government vessel.

But Chinese officials stated the encounter happened after the vessel from the Philippines disregarded multiple alerts and "moved perilously near" the Chinese vessel.

Historical Similar Cases

The Philippine government and Vietnamese authorities are also highly vigilant to depictions of the South China Sea in cartographic materials.

The Barbie movie from 2023 was prohibited in the Vietnamese market and edited in the Philippine release for displaying a maritime chart with the nine dash line.

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

The interception of "non-compliant cartographic materials" by customs officials is not uncommon - though the quantity of the maps confiscated in the Shandong region significantly exceeds previous confiscations. Merchandise that do not meet standards at the border control are eliminated.

In spring, customs officers at an air transportation hub in Qingdao intercepted a batch of 143 navigation charts that featured "apparent inaccuracies" in the sovereign limits.

In late summer, customs officers in Hebei province seized a pair of "violating cartographic materials" that, in addition to other issues, included a "incorrect depiction" of the the Tibet region's limits.