Ruling seen as a victory for the Philippines, which filed the case before the tribunal at The Hague.
An arbitration tribunal in The Hague has rejected China's claims to economic rights across large swaths of the South China Sea, in a ruling that will be claimed as a victory by the Philippines.
"There was no legal basis for China to claim historic rights to resources within the sea areas falling within the 'nine-dash line'," the Permanent Court of Arbitration said on Tuesday, referring to a demarcation line on a 1947 map of the sea.
The South China Sea is a resource-rich strategic waterway through which more than $5 trillion of world trade is shipped each year.
In the 497-page ruling, the court also found that Chinese law enforcement patrols had risked colliding with Philippine fishing vessels in parts of the sea and caused irreparable damage to coral reefs with construction work.
China, which boycotted the case brought by the Philippines, rejected the ruling, saying its islands had exclusive economic zones and the Chinese people have more than 2,000 years of history of activities there.
Chinese President Xi Jinping said his country "will not accept" the decision, adding that China "under any circumstances, will not be affected by the award", Xinhua state news agency reported.
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