Ecuador seeks OAS’ support on Julian Assange

Ecuador President had earlier accused Britain of colonialism for threatening to enter his country`s embassy in London to arrest Julian Assange.

Sydney: Ecuadorian authorities are reportedly seeking support from the Organisation of American States (OAS) in its diplomatic row with the United Kingdom over granting WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange political asylum.

President Rafael Correa said that he expects a ‘forceful repudiation’ of what he has called threats by Britain to forcibly remove Assange from its embassy in London.

According to the Herald Sun, the OAS has planned to conduct an emergency meeting on Friday in Washington DC to discuss the Ecuador-Britain row.

The United States and Canada have questioned whether the issue is relevant to the group, while some Latin American leaders have been strongly supportive of Ecuador, the report said.

Correa had earlier accused Britain of colonialism for threatening to enter Ecuador`s embassy in London to arrest Assange and extradite him to Sweden.

Assange, 41, has been holed up in the embassy since June 19 in a bid to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he is wanted for questioning in connection with alleged sexual assaults.

Assange fears that he could be further extradited to the United States to stand trial for the publishing of leaked confidential documents.

ANI

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