Chinese navy soldiers conduct a patrol on the Nansha Islands. Nansha Islands are the biggest among the archipelagos in the South China Sea, with over 500 islands, shoals and reefs. [Photo: mod.gov.cn]

Authorities in the Chinese mainland say people across the Taiwan Straits have a shared responsibility to safeguard the Nansha Islands.

This comes as Taiwan leader Ma Ying-jeou made a visit to Taiping Island, the largest of the Nansha island group.

Ma was on the island to meet officials and deliver a speech ahead of the Chinese Lunar New Year.

He said the islands in the South China Sea were first discovered, named and used by the Chinese more than 2,000 years ago.

Ma pledged to work to end disputes and promote the peaceful development in the region.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying commented on the visit on Thursday.

"The Nansha Islands have been China's territory since ancient times. The Chinese on the two sides of the Taiwan Strait are duty-bound to safeguard the ancestral property of the Chinese nation."

In addition, Hua said China was working to make the South China Sea a place of peace, friendship and cooperation:

The mainland-based Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council issued a statement a day earlier, reaffirming China's sovereignty over the South China Sea islands, urging people from the Chinese mainland and Taiwan to safeguard the Chinese nation's overall and fundamental interests together.