Abstract: The ownership of the disputed territory can be clarified through war，political means and international judicial procedures. Settling the territory dispute through political means and international judicial procedures is advocated by the modern international law. The territorial sovereignty may be strengthened through effective control，actual possession and treaty to dominate the diplomatic negotiations and international judicial process in the future. At present，the international judicial is likely to take the place of the political means to solve the territorial disputes concerning the South China Sea reefs. So the sovereignty of the disputed reef like Huangyan Island in South China Sea can be defined by the above measures before resorting to international judicial procedures. In addition，advantaged evidence for the China’s rights to and interests of the disputed reefs and sea area in South China Sea can be obtained by the above mentioned means，which is conducive to China’s irrefutable sovereignty of this area.

Key words: Huangyan Island, effective control, actual possession, International Law, treaty