US presses Beijing over South China Sea dispute
Chinese fishery ships patrol the disputed waters in the South China Sea A top US diplomat has called on China to clarify or adjust its territorial claims in the South China Sea in accordance with international law.
Daniel Russel, assistant secretary of state for East Asia, criticised Beijing's so-called "nine-dash line" that outlines its claims.
Analysts say his remarks indicate an increasing US stance in the region.
Tensions are already high over China's imposition of an air defence zone above disputed islands in the East China Sea.
Correspondents say there are fears of a fresh showdown in the South China Sea where six countries claim competing sovereignty over areas believed to contain huge deposits of oil and gas.
Along with China, the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam and Taiwan all have claims in the region.
"Any Chinese claim to maritime rights not based on claimed land features would be inconsistent with international law," Mr Russel told a congressional committee.
"China could highlight its respect for international law by clarifying or adjusting its claim to bring it into accordance with international law of the sea," he said.
Mr Russel said he supported the Philippines' right to take its case to a UN tribunal as part of efforts to find a "peaceful, non-coercive" solution.
China denounced the move last year.
"China's lack of clarity with regard to its South China Sea claims has created uncertainty in the region and limits the prospect for achieving mutually agreeable resolution or equitable joint development arrangements," Mr Russel added.
On Wednesday, China's state news agency branded Philippine President Benigno Aquino a "disgrace" for comments in connection with the territorial row in which he compared China to Nazi Germany.
Mr Aquino called for world leaders not to appease China over its claims in the South China Sea in the same way nations tried to appease Hitler before World War Two.
An angry commentary on the state-run Xinhua news agency branded Mr Aquino an "amateurish politician who was ignorant both of history and reality".
China's "nine-dash line" stretches hundreds of miles south and east from its most southerly province of Hainan.
Beijing says its rights come from 2,000 years of history where the Paracel and Spratly island chains were regarded as part of the Chinese nation.
More than half the world's merchant goods are shipped through the South China Sea and in 2010, then US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton declared that freedom of navigation there was a US national interest.
Relations between China and Japan are currently under strain over a separate territorial row involving islands in the East China Sea known as the Senkaku islands in Japan and the Diaoyu islands in China.
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