Beijing "does not accept and does not recognize" the ruling by a UN-backed tribunal on its dispute with the Philippines over the South China Sea, the foreign ministry said Tuesday.

Beijing "does not accept and does not recognize" the ruling by a UN-backed tribunal on its dispute with the Philippines over the South China Sea, the foreign ministry said Tuesday.

The declaration followed a ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague that China has no historic rights to its claimed "nine-dash line".

"The award is null and void and has no binding force," the ministry said on its website. "China neither accepts nor recognizes it."

Beijing "does not accept any means of third party dispute settlement or any solution imposed on China," it added, reiterating its long-standing position on the dispute.

China has repeatedly denied the tribunal's authority to rule on the dispute with the Philippines over the strategically vital region, claiming that the court's actions are illegal and biased against it.

Beijing refused the opportunity to defend its position before the body.

Despite China's assertions, the tribunal's judgment was "very law based," said Julian Ku, an expert on international at New York's Hofstra University, adding that it did "not uncritically accept the Philippines' arguments".

"I was struck by how much the tribunal bent over backwards to give China opportunities to comment and participate in this case," he added.