Full coverage: The South China Sea Issue

BEIJING, July 12 (Xinhua) -- China said Tuesday it neither accepts nor recognizes the award of an arbitral tribunal in the South China Sea arbitration established at the request of the Philippines.

"The award is null and void and has no binding force," the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

China's territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea shall under no circumstances be affected by those awards. China opposes and will never accept any claim or action based on those awards, according to the statement.

"China has territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea," said a separate statement titled "Statement of the Government of the People's Republic of China on China's Territorial Sovereignty and Maritime Rights and Interests in the South China Sea", adding that China has historic rights in the South China Sea.

China is always firmly opposed to the invasion and illegal occupation by certain states of some islands and reefs of China's Nansha Qundao (the Nansha Islands), and activities infringing upon China's rights and interests in relevant maritime areas under China's jurisdiction, according to the latter statement.