In an interview today with RT Spanish, Ecuadorean Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino rejected the idea of the US “punishing” his nation for granting Julian Assange asylum, saying that the US is “not Ecuador’s father or teacher to punish us” and that his nation has the same rights as any other.
Patino went on to criticize Britain for Foreign Minister William Hague’s threat to attack the Ecuadorean Embassy in London, urging them to repudiate the threat and apologize. He added that the easiest solution to the standoff would be for Britain to just allow Assange safe passage to Ecuador.
British officials have mostly avoided comment on Assange since the asylum agreement, with Hague vowing only to not allow him to leave the country. Since he could stay in the embassy seemingly for years without a deal in place, the question is unlikely to go away on its own.
Ecuador granted Assange asylum on grounds that if he were extradited to Sweden he might be forwarded to the US to face torture or execution. The US has denied issuing any charges against Assange, but Sweden hasn’t charged him with anything either, and has refused to rule out giving him to the US.
Perhaps is time for South American nation to start punishing US for all those years of Cop De Etta and other atrocities that US and England have caused the people.
Look, every president of the US had to have a war under its name, therefore US and England are at war with every nation in this world, with accept ones that are more dictatorial then others,. US and EU although they are talking about peoples freedom but their version of freedom of speech and other social matters is what this NEO Liberals fascism is about, here if anyone is against such terms and rule of these people then that person is either a traitor and is at doing treasons and therefore needs to be silenced. Now is about a man of courage (Assange and Manning and others) and guts whom did speak loudly about US and EU killings of innocent people, tailing about all that war crimes committed knowingly to show who they are and what they are capable of doing.
IMHO, to me it looks like stupid from the UK and US to force Ecuador to keep Assange in the London embassy. There is not much what they can really do to him without getting world wide attention. If they would just let him leave for Ecuador they would have a much greater chance to catch or kill him with a covered action. I'm myslef I'm glad when he stays alive in the embassy and I would be very scared when he leaves for Ecuador. Just think about Osama bL.
Yea the US is making itself look like a tyrant in front of the whole world and Britain is making itself look like a pathetic little colony eager to do anything to please their colonial masters in Washington. This would be a public relations disaster if there weren't other more important stories in the media such as Lindsay Lohan's latest stint in rehab or the congessman going skinny dipping in the Sea of Gallilee.
The United States is also refusing like Sweden, to guarantee that it is NOT going to charge him at a later date and also refusing to say it does not have a secret sealed indictment awaiting Assange if they ever get him to Sweden.
Both of them stand and deliver, the United States openly and unambiguously give assange a Presidential Pardon in relation to the Wikileaks matters, and Sweden tell the world that there will ba an open trial!
That should satisfy EVERY ONE!
The truth is that there is such a document, does one really think that the British would go as far as threatening to storm an Embassy to seize a person not even charged with a crime! ther must be enormous pressure being put on the British by the US to get a move on!
How about Sweden sending its prosecutor to question Assange in the Ecuadorian Embassy?
Also, wouldn't it be nice to get an unimpeded interview with the original prosecutor who found the claims without, or of insufficient, merit and refused to file charges? And what of the women, one of whom is connected to the ruling political party? Has the government checked their bank accounts since this happened?
I'm sure that payment was contingent upon delivery of the goods.
Go ahea, Britain, make my day! You puny little colony, you!
The irony of all of this would be delicious if it weren't so perverted. The analogy that comes to mind is of Cardinal Mindszenty who had been accused of treason and conspiracy against the new Communist state of Hungary in 1948, forced to go throw a trumped up show trial, and imprisoned until 1956 when he was released by the insurgents of the Hungarian Revolution. After the Soviet invasion in that same year, he was forced to seek asylum in the U.S. embassy, where he remained for 15 years.
Will Assange still be in the Ecuadorian embassy in 2027, when Hillary is an old lady, and B.O. has joined Bill in collecting millions for his presidential library and the dissemination of "pearls of wisdom" for the benefit of humanity?
Has the U.S. become another Soviet state on the issue of freedom of speech? Should it be able to pressure other nations to pervert the extradition laws in such a way as to seize a journalist whose organization published secret cables disclosing serious war crimes and other official wrongdoing, and embarrassed the U.S. Administration and other governments in the process- especially if there is no showing that lives were in fact compromised by the disclosures? Is this intended to lead to another Soviet-style show trial to threaten journalists and others who seek to inform the people of what their governments, – especially ours, that was supposed to be "of, by and for the PEOPLE"- for bearing witness and disclosing and debating these issues in public? And are our lawmakers so fearful that they are now paralyzed and cannot exercise rational judgment about this faux "war on terror", or demand accountability from officials who use bogus classifications to hide crimes and official wrongdoing? Ultimately, these disclosures are being done by people to make up for what their governments have refused or otherwise failed to do to make the world a more honest, peaceful and prosperous place to live for everyone.
When has the U.S. threatened to punish Ecuador? When it has it asked for the extradition of Assange? I am astonished at the number and vigor of the comments condemning the U.S. for something it hasn't done.