China has reportedly leased a giant billboard in New York's Times Square, showcasing a video asserting its claim over the South China Sea and falsely suggesting a British MP supports its claim over the disputed waterway.

The video is being played 120 times a day from July 23 to August 3 in New York's famous commercial intersection, according to China's state-owned news agency Xinhua.

Vision from the campaign airing on a giant LED screen in the buzzing intersection. ( YouTube: China Review Studio )

Xinhua leased the same billboard in 2011, but it was unclear whether the agency still occupied it and was involved in the campaign.

The three-minute campaign video comes after a tribunal this month ruled the country's claim to most of the waterway was inconsistent with international law.

The decision angered Beijing, which vowed to ignore the ruling.

On Wednesday, US Secretary of State John Kerry said Washington wanted to avoid confrontation and encouraged China and the Philippines to engage in talks and "confidence-building measures".

Catherine West is included in the video, suggesting she supports China's claim over the disputed waterway. ( YouTube: China Review Studio )

The video is heavily subtitled and features a selection of figureheads little know in the US, including Catherine West, a British MP and the Labour Party's shadow foreign minister.

Ms West was incorrectly given the title of Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs in the video.

"I think talks are crucial, and that's why we have the be careful that yes, we need to resolve something very locally and have a grown-up approach to dialogue," Ms West said in the video.

Mr West told Buzzfeed she had been misrepresented and was "perplexed and concerned" by her part in the campaign.

"I have consistently voiced concern over militarisation of South China Sea by China," Ms West said in a tweet.

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John Ross, Ken Livingstone's economic advisor during his time as mayor of London from 2000 to 2008, also made an appearance.

Mr Ross is an academic and frequent contributor to China Daily, another state-sponsored news agency.

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ABC/AFP