BEIJING, July 14 (Reuters) - China's foreign ministry on Tuesday called the European ‌side to be cautious in ‌its words and deeds on the South China ​Sea and stop endorsing the "illegal ruling" to prevent impact on China-EU ties and cooperation.

"Europe is not a party to the ‌South China ⁠Sea issue and has no right to comment on China's legitimate ⁠territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea," ​foreign ministry ​spokesperson Lin Jian ​told a daily ‌press briefing.

The comments came after a joint statement issued on Sunday by countries including some European nations said China's expansive maritime claims in the South China ‌Sea have no legal ​basis, followed by ​a relevant statement ​from the EU.

China has ‌also summoned officials of the ​embassies of ​relevant countries in China and the EU delegation to China and ​lodged serious ‌representations with them, Lin said.

(Reporting by ​Xiuhao Chen and Liz Lee; Editing ​by Christopher Cushing)