Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Wednesday said that he has personally asked the US government to drop its case against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who is an Australian citizen.
Albanese, who previously rejected public pressure to push for Assange’s release, said that he raised the issue with US officials in recent meetings. “The government will continue to act in a diplomatic way, but can I assure the member … that I have raised this personally with representatives of the United States government,” Albanese said.
“My position is clear and has been made clear to the US administration – that it is time that this matter be brought to a close,” the Australian leader added.
Assange has been held in London’s Belmarsh Prison since April 2019 as the US is trying to extradite him for exposing government secrets and war crimes. The US Department of Justice has indicted Assange using the Espionage Act for receiving and publishing leaks from whistleblower Chelsea Manning, a standard journalistic practice.
If extradited to the US, Assange could face a sentence of up to 175 years in a maximum security prison for his journalism. Albanese’s comments came after The New York Times and four major European news outlets finally spoke out for Assange in a letter to the US government.
In the letter, the five news organizations said that “publishing is not a crime” and that it was time for the US “to end its prosecution of Julian Assange for publishing secrets.” The letter acknowledged that Assange’s work “in the public interest is a core part of the daily work of journalists.”
The DOJ declined to comment when asked by Antiwar.com if dropping the charges against Assange was being considered.
Good! I hope all charges are dropped and he can walk free. It takes some major cajones to do what he did. Let him go!
It`s fair to say he will never be safe in any Western Country or any country vassal to the US , the CIA bragged about kid napping or shooting him , and i don`t doubt they will try .
He is about to die thus offerring a golden opportunity to the MSM to fight for thr freedom of speech and against harsh incarceration on filmsy evidence, and against illegal capture of foreign national. They would then for next 20 yearswould claim how the fourth estate forced a vindictive government surrender to the principle.
Remember Judith Miller . This guy is oppositeto Judith Miller . Even the treatment is polar opposite . She was worshipped . This guy was flaggelated .She became a fall guy after delivering what necons wanted .
This guy would soon become a forgotten martyr ,a silent martyr but would be possibly used loudly by the cheating MSM .
Jesus Christ Super Star II will not be forgotten. He will be worshiped for millennia after his torturers are finished with him.
Not a moment too soon.
Instead of outrage, Albanese is kissing the a$$es of the war criminals who have been torturing, plotting to drone and kill Assange. I’m confident Australians are proud of how polite Albanese was when asking for Assange’s release and for their country’s despicable submission to the warmongers.
Somebody needs to ask the PM why his position suddenly changed when the facts never have.
The charges are FAlSE , the yanks where allowed to bring these charges so the real crime can be swept under the carpet namely WAR CRIMES committed by the US Military , and the British COCK SUCKERS allowed them to do it.
The greatest criminal on the planet always punishes others and tells everyone else what to do. It certainly hates truth-telling journalists.
Long past time. Shameful.
That’s twice the Australian Government has done the right thing! First revoking recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, and now this. What’s happening to our country? Our governments have consistently been wrong all the time for decades. They are still wrong about everything else, but can we depend on them to continue to be wrong in the future? This is very unsettling.