North Korea is holding 15 Russian and two South Korean crew of a fishing vessel for violating entry regulations, the Russian Embassy in North Korea said Wednesday.

The crew were detained on July 17 by North Korean border guards, and are currently being held in a hotel in the city of Wonsan, the Russian embassy in the North Korean capital of Pyongyang said in a post on its Facebook page.

The ship, identified by the embassy as the Xiangheilin-8, owned by the Northeast Fishery Company out of Nevelsk, Russia, was also at Wonsan.

North Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the crew was detained for "violating the rules of entry and stay in the territory of (North Korea)," the embassy reported.