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"Relevant countries need to respect China's sovereignty, territorial integrity and maritime rights and interests, and stop mischaracterizing facts and truth," noted Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun on Thursday in response to "concerns" voiced by the US, the UK, France, and Germany over recent Chinese Coast Guard patrols off Taiwan's east coast.

To begin with, Chinese authorities' law enforcement and patrol operations in the waters are lawful exercises of jurisdiction, aimed at protecting regional stability and maintaining order at sea.

As Guo noted, under both China's domestic law and international law, including UNCLOS, China holds exclusive economic zone and continental shelf rights in waters east of Taiwan. China's operations serve as a necessary response to Japan and the Philippines' efforts to advance their delimitation agenda and their infringement of China's maritime rights and interests.

Relevant countries' "concerns" therefore deserve scrutiny. These governments present themselves as "defenders" of regional stability, yet their statements often function as political cover for a broader effort to restrain China's maritime presence while leaving room for others to advance their own agendas.

The four countries have repeatedly said they oppose any unilateral change to the status quo. But it is Japan and the Philippines that have quietly pursued maritime delimitation talks in an apparent attempt to carve up China's maritime areas. China's routine law-enforcement patrols and operations in waters under its own jurisdiction are, in fact, efforts to preserve the status quo and uphold the international maritime legal order.

Interestingly, the US, the UK, France, and Germany have turned a blind eye to Japan and the Philippines' infringements while criticizing China's legitimate efforts to defend its rights and interests. Such an approach only underscores the double standard at play. When the four external powers issue warning signals over Chinese patrols in nearby waters, the message is not neutral concern; it is a clear attempt to shape the strategic environment around Taiwan.

Regarding Japan and the Philippines' infringements, the DPP authorities are instead aligning themselves with external forces to smear the central government's efforts to defend justified rights and promote separatist narratives.

Following the joint statement, the DPP authorities' so-called "external affairs department" voiced gratitude, noting the statement echoed the G7 summit declaration opposing "any unilateral attempts to change the status quo" in the Taiwan Strait. This once again reveals the DPP authorities' separatist nature and their betrayal of the broader interests of the Chinese nation.

External powers and the Taiwan authorities have their respective calculations. But one thing is clear: law enforcement in waters under China's own jurisdiction is justified and legitimate.

If the US, the UK, France, and Germany are truly concerned about freedom of navigation and regional stability, they should first urge Japan and the Philippines to stop holding delimitation talks in waters east of China's Taiwan Island. That, rather than China's lawful activities, is what is undermining regional stability and altering the status quo.

The author Jianxi Liu is a Beijing-based political and international relations analyst. She writes on topics about the US, the EU, and the Middle East.

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