The South China Sea arbitration case brought by the Philippines is nothing but a ruse in the guise of law, and China will neither accept nor acknowledge the forthcoming ruling, said Ouyang Yujing, head of the Foreign Ministry's Department of Boundary and Ocean Affairs.

He said on Friday the arbitration case is ultimately about sovereignty and disputes over maritime delimitation, and the Philippines filed the case to try to distort the fact that it has illegally occupied China's territory.

The issue of sovereignty doesn't fall under the auspices of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, he said.