China dismisses US appeal to accept tribunal verdict on South China Sea

Beijing: Dismissing the US appeal to accept the verdict of the international tribunal on the disputed South China Sea as "delusional", China on Saturday said it can not be forced to accept the July 12 ruling.

"It can only be a delusion of relevant parties to impose the ruling on China through diplomatic pressurising and negative publicity campaign. We advise them to give up such futile attempts," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said.

US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defence Abraham Denmark has appealed to China to accept the tribunal verdict to be delivered on July 12.

"The arbitration unilaterally initiated by the Philippine Aquino administration distorts the purposes of UNCLOS (UN Convention on Law of Seas), challenges the Declaration on the Conduct (DOC) of parties in the South China Sea as a regional regulation, and flouts the rule of law and regulations under the banner of defending them," Hong told the media.

"By not accepting the ruling nor participating in the arbitrary tribunal, China is acting in accordance with law while championing UNCLOS and the DOC as well as the international rule of law and regulations. China will never change its stance," he said.

China's assertion of claims overall but most of South China Sea is disputed by the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan.

The tribunal appointed by the Permanent Court of Arbitration, based in The Hague, would rule on the Philippines petition challenging the claims of China over the South China Sea next week.

Denmark has urged both China and the Philippines to comply with the ruling.

It would be a chance to determine "whether the Asia-Pacific's future will be defined by adherence to international laws and norms that have enabled it to prosper, or whether the region's future will be determined by raw calculations of power," Denmark was quoted as saying.