BEIJING (AP) — China on Thursday defended its recent patrols in waters east of Taiwan, one day after Britain, France and Germany expressed alarm about what they described as “novel Chinese activity."

While the three European countries said the activity, which they did not specifically identify, endangered regional stability, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said China's law-enforcement and patrol activities were aimed at maintaining regional stability and maritime order.

China deployed coast guard ships in response to an announcement by Japan and the Philippines that they would discuss their maritime boundaries in waters that Beijing views as its own.

“These are necessary actions in response to Japan’s and the Philippines’ manipulation of maritime delimitation issues and infringement upon China’s maritime rights and interests,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said at a daily briefing.

A joint statement from the de facto embassies of the three European nations in Taiwan said China's actions threatened regional stability, freedom of navigation and the safety of international shipping. The U.S. also expressed concern about the activity, Taiwan's Central News Agency said.

Taiwan said earlier this month that Chinese coast guard ships were harassing commercial vessels near the island by asking them to report their intended routes.

The waters are a vital shipping lane for oil and gas and goods being transported from the Mideast and Europe to ports in China, Japan and South Korea. Taiwan is a self-governing island, but China claims it as its territory along with the rights to the surrounding waters.

Guo said that the coast guard activities were “legitimate exercises of jurisdiction in accordance with the law.”

Beijing’s tensions with Tokyo have increased since Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi last year suggested the country’s military could get involved if China were to take military action against Taiwan.

The Taiwan issue is considered a flash point that could spark hostilities between China and the U.S., which is the main supplier of weaponry to Taiwan for its defense.

China sailed its newest and most powerful aircraft carrier through the Taiwan Strait this week, just hours after Taiwan began a five-day military exercise to practice its response to a possible Chinese attack.