U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio publicly criticized China on the 9th anniversary of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) ruling, which rejected China's claims of sovereignty over most of the South China Sea.
On the 12th (local time), Minister Rubio stated in a press release, "Since the PCA ruling in 2016, China has continued to assert illegal maritime sovereignty and has ignored the ruling," adding, "The United States supports a free and open Indo-Pacific."
He further urged China to "comply with the PCA ruling from 2016 and to cease its dangerous and destabilizing actions."
China and the Philippines have been engaged in a territorial dispute in the South China Sea.
China has drawn a line that connects points in a 'U' shape (the nine-dash line) and claims about 90% of the area within it as its territory, prompting the Philippines to file a lawsuit with the PCA.
On July 12, 2016, the PCA issued an arbitration decision stating that "China's claims have no basis in international law," but China has not accepted this.