Lao's Minister in Government's Office Alounkeo Kittikhoun (L-R), Malaysia's Secretary-General of Foreign Affairs Othman Hashim, Myanmar's Permanent Secretary of Foreign Affairs U Aung Lynn, Thailand's Deputy Secretary of Ministry of Foreign Affairs Vitavas Srivihok, Vietnam's Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Hoai Trung, China's Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Liu Zhenmin, Singapore's Permanent Secretary of Ministry of Foreign Affairs Chee Wee Kiong, Philippines' Senior Officials Meeting Leader from Department of Foreign Affairs Enrique A. Manalo, Brunei's Permanent Secretary of Foreign Affairs and Trade Emaleen Teo, Cambodia's Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Soeung Ratchavy, Indonesia's Director of Foreign Affairs M. Chandra W. Yudha and Deputy Secretary-General, ASEAN Secretariat V.P. Hirubalan join hands before the 11th ASEAN-China senior officials meeting of the Implementation of the Declaration of the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea in Singapore April 27, 2016. REUTERS/Edgar Su
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - China risks "terrible" damage to its reputation if it ignores an impending international court ruling on the South China Sea, the United States said on Thursday, while urging Southeast Asian countries to rally behind the court decision.
The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague is expected to rule in coming weeks on a case the Philippines has brought against China's claim to virtually all of the South China Sea, a strategic route for a quarter of the world's trade and oil.
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