A leading Japanese daily says the Japanese government has bowed to pressure from China and pledged not to protect North Korean escapees that take refuge in Japanese diplomatic missions in China.

The Yomiuri Shimbun said Thursday that Tokyo made the pledge in a document presented to China. In the document, Japan vowed to abide by China's national laws and agreed not to take North Korean escapees into Japanese diplomatic missions in China. Tokyo’s move comes after China requested early this year that Japan stop protecting North Korean escapees in its missions.

So far, the Japanese government has accepted some 200 North Korean escapees to take shelter in Japanese missions abroad, including in China.