An official at the Chinese embassy in the U.S. says China has gone by the book in its handling of the North Koreans fleeing their homeland.

A political counselor to the Chinese ambassador told a seminar in Washington that North Korean escapees in China are dealt with in accordance with Chinese law and international rules.

The embassy official said his nation has been unable to place an exact figure on the number of North Korean escapees China currently has.

China regards North Koreans fleeing its communist neighbor as economic migrants, not refugees.

In regards to a high-level Chinese official’s visit to the North last month, the counselor said that it’s a tradition for China to send a delegation to North Korea at the beginning of each new year.

Wang Jiarui, the head of the international department of China’s Communist Party, visited the North and met with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il in January.