Julian Assange says he'll stay in Ecuador embassy, even if Sweden drops case

Julian Assange with Ecuadorian Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino on the balcony of the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. Picture: AP Source: AP

JULIAN Assange says he won't leave the Ecuadorean embassy in London even if Sweden drops its investigation into allegations he sexually assaulted two women.

The WikiLeaks founder made the surprise announcement during an anniversary interview to mark one year since he sought refuge inside the diplomatic mission.

Mr Assange believes the United States has likely already issued a sealed extradition order meaning if he left the embassy he'd be arrested by British police and taken to the US to face charges over WikiLeaks' release of classified documents.

The former hacker has previously suggested a sealed indictment had been issued against him because he was the target of a federal grand jury investigation in the US.

Now he's said a sealed extradition request is probably in place too.

“We know a mechanism of sealed extradition requests also exists between the United States and the United Kingdom and the UK also has a concept of sealed warrants that follow on from sealed extradition requests,” Mr Assange told reporters inside the embassy.


“Therefore if the Swedish government immediately drops their (extradition) request tomorrow I still can't leave this embassy because of the US matter.

“If I walked out the front door I could be arrested in relation to the United States ... right now.”

Mr Assange said he should be able to travel to the airport in a diplomatic car “thus avoiding the possibility of arrest on the back of a sealed extradition request”.

“However we know that the UK police were instructed (in the Sweden case) to break international law and arrest me even if I was in a diplomatic vehicle and had diplomatic immunity.”

Queensland-born Mr Assange insists he won't leave the embassy until the British government guarantees him “safe passage” to South America.

Alternatively he says he'd walk out the front door if he knew the US, as well as Sweden, had dropped its investigation.

But Mr Assange said it was “highly unlikely” the UK would ever publicly say “no” to the US in the matter.

The whistleblower noted in similar cases other political refugees had been stuck in embassies for dozens of years.

However he isn't planning to wait that long.

“We don't intend to leave the situation to fate,” he said.

Mr Assange said the UK's position could be challenged in the International Court of Justice even though the process would be expensive and could take years.

Ecuadorean Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino met with Assange this week.

The minister said Mr Assange told him he was strong enough to remain in the embassy “for five years ... rather than face legal proceedings in the US”.

“For us this is a matter of principle and if you act on principle you have all the time in the world,” Mr Patino said.

Mr Assange walked into the Ecuadorean embassy on June 19, 2012, and was granted political asylum two months later on August 16.

AAP