China and the United States would be attending the upcoming G20 summit next month in the city of Hangzhou despite a clash in their foreign policies -- the US deployment of anti-missile system in Seoul and China's increasing assertiveness in its claims to the disputed waters of the South China Sea.

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As Chinese President Xi Jinping prepares to host the annual summit, political observers said on Saturday that these foreign policy issues have to be addressed quickly by the two nations to avert a possible military confrontation in the Korean peninsula and the disputed South China Sea.

Despite the ruling of an international arbitration court last month rejecting China's claims to almost the entirety of the resource-rich waters of the South China Sea, Beijing continues to reclaim land and construct military facilities such as air strips and reinforced hangars on disputed islands and reefs in the international waterway.

500-page ruling

In a 500-page unanimous ruling by the Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration on July 12, the court said Beijing violated international law and the Philippines' sovereign and economic rights to explore resources in its exclusive economic zone.

The court's verdict was handed down in a territorial case filed by the Philippines against China in 2013.

Observers have said the ruling could "inspire" other claimant-countries to file lawsuits against Beijing if it continues to deny them access to the resource-rich strategic waterway.

Most militarized area

With competing claims from China, Brunei, Taiwan, Malaysia, Vietnam, and the Philippines, the South China Sea has been dubbed by the international community as 'one of the most militarized areas on the planet.'

The disputed waterway sits on a huge deposit of natural resources such as gas and oil and where $5 trillion worth of ship-borne trade passes through yearly.

Beijing has said the PCA's ruling would not affect its rights to the territory. The latest satellite images released by a US think tank last week showed that China is constructing of reinforced hangars on several reclaimed islands in the Spratly. The hangars are reportedly capable of accommodating several military aircraft, including fighter jets.

Reinforced hangars

"China is building hangar space for 24 fighter jets and three to four larger military planes at each of its three largest artificial islands," Gregory Poling, director of Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, (ATMI)  said.

The US Navy currently dominates the region being the world's largest naval superpower, but analysts have said this is going to change following Beijing's resolve to expand its naval capabilities.

China is hosting this year's G20 summit in the city of Hangzhou and has announced that the South China Sea issue would not be discussed at the global forum.

Chinese authorities said only "economic issues" would be on the agenda during the summit, which will be held from September 2-4.

The summit will bring together leaders of the world's major economies to discuss global, regional, and bilateral issues concerning the organization. 

TagsG20 summit, Hangzhou, South China Sea, foreign policies, United States, china