Manila expects early U.N. ruling on sea dispute with Beijing

Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert Del Rosario poses for a picture before the start of a Reuters interview at the Department of Foreign Affairs headquarters in Manila September 4, 2013. REUTERS/Romeo Ranoco

MANILA (Reuters) - The Philippines expects an early ruling from the United Nations' tribunal on its arbitration case questioning China's claim on the South China Sea, Manila's foreign minister said on Thursday, in the first public announcement of hopes for a swift outcome.

Friction over the key shipping route has surged as China uses its growing naval might to assert a vast claim over the oil-and-gas rich area more strongly, raising fears of a conflict with other nations bordering the water body.