The Philippines says it has taken China to a UN tribunal to challenge its claims to territory in the South China Sea.
The Philippines will challenge China's claim to most of the South China Sea at a United Nations tribunal.
The row between Manila and Beijing erupted last April when government vessels from both sides faced off for several weeks at the Scarborough Shoal.
Foreign secretary Albert del Rosario says diplomatic efforts to resolve the dispute have failed and the government has been left with no choice but to go to the UN:
"The Philippines has exhausted almost all political and diplomatic avenues for a peaceful negotiated settlement of its maritime disputes with China," he said.
"We hope that the arbitral proceedings shall bring the dispute to a durable solution."
Manila told Beijing's ambassador on Tuesday about the decision to take China to an arbitration tribunal under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
