Antinuclear

UK backtracks on its threat to invade Ecuador Embassy in London, to get Julian Assange

UK retreats on Assange embassy threat THE AUSTRALIAN,  AFP August 27, 2012  ECUADOR’S President Rafael Correa has said he believed his country had overcome a diplomatic spat with Britain over its threat to enter the
Ecuadoran Embassy in London in order to arrest Wikileaks founder Julian Assange.

“We believe that this unfortunate incident is over,” said Mr Correa. “It was a mistake for the British Foreign Office to say that they would enter our embassy.”

“It’s good that the United Kingdom has given up its threat.

“Now we act as if we never received it. We must seek a mutually
acceptable solution of the case of Julian Assange through dialogue.”

British Prime Minister David Cameron “must be really angry with his
Foreign Minister”, Mr Correa said, “because, besides the rudeness and
the discourtesy, the intolerable threat this was, it was a huge
diplomatic blunder.” The president added that he was glad the two
countries “were returning to the path of dialogue and were looking for
a consensual solution without abandoning our principles.”…..
Mr Correa told reporters the sex-crime allegations against the
WikiLeaks founder were “not a crime in Latin America” and had played
no part in Quito’s decision to grant Assange asylum.

He also blasted the British government for its “contradictions” in
wanting to extradite Mr Assange to Sweden, when it did not extradite
former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet after his 1998 arrest in
London on an international arrest warrant issued by Spanish judge
Baltasar Garzon – who is now heading Mr Assange’s legal team.

“The crimes that Assange is accused of, they would not be crimes in 90
to 95 per cent of the planet,” Mr Correa said.

“Not to use a condom in an act between a couple, this is not a crime
in Latin America.

“But I don’t want to get any more into this, this has been irrelevant
to the decision taken by Ecuador.

“And we’re all in agreement that Julian Assange should go to the
Swedish justice system.”

The 34-member Organisation of American States declared “solidarity and
support” for Ecuador on Friday, rejecting “any attempt that might put
at risk the inviolability of the premises of diplomatic missions”.

Mr Correa added: “Britain supported Augusto Pinochet unconditionally.
And they let him go, they didn’t extradite him on humanitarian grounds
– whereas they want to extradite Julian Assange for not using a
condom, for the love of God.”
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/uk-retreats-on-assange-embassy-threat/story-e6frg6so-1226458417440

August 27, 2012 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | AUSTRALIA - NATIONAL, politics international