N Korean refugees held in China

Five refugees tried to enter the Japanese consulate

A group of refugees from North Korea has been detained by Chinese armed police while trying to enter a Japanese consulate in north-east China.

Japanese embassy officials have lodged a protest over the incident, issuing a statement describing China's actions as "extremely problematic and regrettable".

The incident happened in Shenyang, a north-eastern city 200 kilometres (125 miles) inland from China's border with North Korea.

Three refugees were prevented from entering the compound

Armed police entered the grounds of the consulate without permission, and forcibly removed two people from inside the compound, a Japanese Foreign Ministry official said.

Their actions came despite demands by Japanese consular officials that the men should be left inside the building.

Another three refugees were detained outside the compound.

On the same day, two other men succeeded in gaining access to a United States consulate in Shenyang by scaling a wall.

Refugee status

The asylum bids are the latest in a series of attempts by North Korean refugees to enter foreign embassies and consulates in China.

Chinese authorities have already increased security around Beijing's foreign missions to prevent further asylum attempts, adding barbed wire and posting extra guards.

The asylum bids have highlighted China's refusal to recognise as refugees the tens of thousands of North Koreans hiding in north-eastern regions.

The Beijing administration is torn between its old ally North Korea on one side, and its key economic partner South Korea and the United Nations on the other - which say that migrants from North Korea deserve refugee status.

Aid groups estimate that between 100,000 and 300,000 North Koreans have fled to north-east China in recent years to escape political repression and famine.