BEIJING: Chinese customs authorities have seized 60,000 maps for “errors” that included mislabelling Taiwan and omitting territories in the South China Sea, amid brewing tensions on both fronts.

Customs officers from Qingdao in Shandong province intercepted the “problematic” maps during a recent inspection of export goods, China Customs said in a statement on Monday (Oct 13). It did not specify when exactly the operation was carried out.

The offending maps contained “mislabels” of Taiwan, authorities said, without elaborating on the exact error. China views Taiwan as its territory and has stepped up military and political pressure over the past few years.

They also omitted “important islands” in the South China Sea while failing to include China’s nine-dash line in the South China Sea. The maps also omitted the Diaoyu Islands as well as the maritime boundary line showing island ownership between China and Japan, according to the statement.

China claims nearly the entire South China Sea, a position that overlaps with four Southeast Asian neighbours - Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines and Vietnam - as well as Taiwan.

Beijing also strongly criticised and dismissed a 2016 international tribunal ruling - brought by Manila - that largely rejected its expansive claims.

Meanwhile, China and Japan both claim a string of islands - called Diaoyu by the Chinese and Senkaku by the Japanese - in the East China Sea northeast of Taiwan.

Furthermore, the maps lacked the review numbers issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources, authorities said.

Chinese law states that maps and products showing a map must be vetted by the Ministry of Natural Resources during export, according to the South China Morning Post (SCMP). Maps meant to be published or shown outside mainland China also require vetting.

Under Chinese regulations, such “problematic maps” are classified as items that “endanger national unity, sovereignty, and territorial integrity”, and are prohibited from being imported or exported, the customs statement wrote.

This is not the first time Chinese authorities have moved against maps that diverge from Beijing’s positions. In 2022, customs officials in Zhejiang province seized 23,500 maps that had similar issues, SCMP reported.

In 2019, authorities in Qingdao shredded about 29,000 export-bound maps that depicted Taiwan as a country.

News of the latest enforcement comes amid heightened tensions in the South China Sea, following a fresh maritime clash between Chinese and Philippine vessels.

The Philippines said a Chinese ship deliberately rammed one of its government vessels on Sunday near Thitu Island, part of the disputed Spratly Islands.

Beijing has blamed Manila for the incident. Its coast guard said the incident occurred after a Philippine vessel entered nearby waters, "ignored repeated stern warnings from the Chinese side, and dangerously approached" the Chinese ship.

The United States, an ally of the Philippines, on Monday condemned China’s "ramming and water cannoning" of the Philippine vessel and said Washington stood with its ally "as they confront China's dangerous actions which undermine regional stability".

China’s customs seize 60,000 ‘problematic’ maps for mislabelling Taiwan, omitting disputed islands