China expressed its disapproval on Monday over Vietnam and Philippines' sports fest held on the disputed Spratly islands by calling it a "clumsy farce".

Foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying described the event as insignificant and ridiculous.

"Don't you think this small move together by Vietnam and the Philippines is at most a clumsy farce?" she said during a daily briefing.

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Hua again reiterated Beijing's stance that it maintains indisputable sovereignty over the entire Spratly islands and its surrounding seas, Channel News Asia has learned.

"We demand that Vietnam and the Philippines stop any behavior that picks quarrels and causes trouble... and not do anything to complicate or magnify the dispute," she added.

Vietnam and the Philippines had participated in a day-long gathering on Sunday in the Vietnam-controlled island of Southwest Cay in the Spratlys where navies from both nations would engage in contact sports such as football and volleyball to help ease tensions and promote peaceful relations.

According to Reuters, some experts speculate that the partnership between Vietnam and the Philippines may have been caused by its mutual tension with China, as well as in its wariness over the United States' commitment to the region.

The Spratly Islands, comprised of over 30,000 reefs and islands, contain significant oil and natural gas reserves and are being claimed by Brunei, China, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.

Last week, footage of a Chinese ship ramming into Vietnamese fishing boats and causing one to capsize were released by Vietnamese media.

In response, Hua defended Beijing and said that 63 Vietnamese ships had been sent to near China's oil rig in the Paracels, attempting to break through the barriers and ramming Chinese ships for about 1,416 times.

She said that Beijing had communicated with Vietnam multiple times to "stop its illegal disruption".

"China wants good relations with Vietnam, but there are principles that China cannot abandon," she added.

Since its deployment, the Haiyang Shiyou 981 rig has been drilling in the Paracel islands, overlapping with the 200 nautical mile exclusive economic zone being claimed by Vietnam which has heightened tensions between the two and led to a deadly anti-riot in Vietnam.

Tagsmaritime dispute, paracel, Paracel Islands, southwest cay, sports fest, Haiyang Shiyou 981