China will be the "loser" if it does not recognize an international court ruling against Beijing's territorial claims in the South China Sea, Philippine Foreign Minister Perfecto Yasay Jr. said Tuesday.

"We are trying to make China understand especially when the dust settles that unless they respect and recognize the arbitral tribunal, they will be the losers at the end of that day on this matter," Yasay told a congressional hearing.

An arbitration court in The Hague infuriated China in July when it ruled that China had no historical title over the South China Sea and it had breached the Philippines' sovereign rights with various actions there.