The statement from the foreign ministry comes as the Court of Arbitration in the Hague is expected to announce its verdict over territorial disputes in the South China Sea. 

China has repeatedly laid out the reasons behind its claims. China is the first country to discover and name the islands in the South China Sea. As early as the second century BC, ancient Chinese explorers documented their maritime travels to the Nansha Islands. The Zheng He Navigational Charts of the Ming Dynasty in the 15th century include the Nansha Islands. In 1948, China demarcated its territory in the South China Sea with the nine-dotted line.