US intends to chase Assange, cables show

US intends to chase Assange, cables show

www.smh.com.au

AUSTRALIAN diplomats have no doubt the United States is intent on pursuing Julian Assange, Foreign Affairs and Trade Department documents obtained by the Herald show.

This is at odds with comments by the Foreign Affairs Minister, Bob Carr, who has dismissed suggestions the US plans to eventually extradite Assange on charges arising from WikiLeaks obtaining leaked US military and diplomatic documents.

(visit the link for the full news article)

The Australian embassy in Washington has been tracking a US espionage investigation targeting the WikiLeaks publisher for more than 18 months.

The declassified diplomatic cables, released under freedom of information legislation, show Australia's ambassador, the former Labor leader Kim Beazley, has made high level representations to the US government asking for advance warning of any moves to prosecute Assange.

Briefings for the Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, and Senator Carr also suggest the Australian government has no in-principle objection to extradition.

The Australian embassy in Washington reported in February that “the US investigation into possible criminal conduct by Mr Assange has been ongoing for more than a year”.

The embassy identified a wide range of criminal charges the US could bring against Assange, including espionage, conspiracy, unlawful access to classified information and computer fraud.

The released diplomatic cables also show that the Australian government considers the prospect of extradition sufficiently likely that, on direction from Canberra, Mr Beazley sought high level US advice on “the direction and likely outcome of the investigation” and “reiterated our request for early advice of any decision to indict or seek extradition of Mr Assange”.

The evidence regarding the USA and Assange continues to roll out, with Australian Embassy reports detailing that the US was investigating Assange and Wikileaks since 2010. Furthermore, these reports show that an extradition of Assange to the US is (was) increasingly likely since Australia would not have objected...

www.smh.com.au
(visit the link for the full news article)

The US wants Assange, there is no secret there..

However.. he simply CANNOT be extradited to the USA ... Sweden, by law, cannot send him to the US even if the US wants him.. which we all know they do ..

By law, Sweden cannot extradite someone to a country where they risk death... treason comes with a death penalty ... Sweden has already announced they cannot and would not extradite him to the US for that reason..

Sweden said they wouldn't/couldn't .. as recently as this week..

The ONLY way Assange could be extradited is if the USA guaranteed that Assange would not be given a death sentence.... in that case, it's possible..

But I look for Ecuador to make assange a citizen and then a diplomat, granting him immunity abroad.

Poor Assange, if he gets taken to the US, he is done for. The way the US government is going after him shows a lot about what Wikileaks has put out. If Assange was just another nut job conspiracist, then he might just be forgotten about, but he apparently is hitting home with a lot of issues that some people don't want brought in the light.

Originally posted by th3onetruth
Poor Assange, if he gets taken to the US, he is done for. The way the US government is going after him shows a lot about what Wikileaks has put out. If Assange was just another nut job conspiracist, then he might just be forgotten about, but he apparently is hitting home with a lot of issues that some people don't want brought in the light.

I think Assange will be living a long life... much to the USA's disappointment ..

I think what we'll see is that Assange will become a citizen of Ecuador first.. and then Ecuador will declare him as a diplomat... once that happens, he's untouchable because he has diplomatic immunity... he can then leave the embassy without fear of arrest... board the plane, fly to Ecuador and continue as always..

By law, Sweden cannot extradite someone to a country where they risk death... treason comes with a death penalty ... Sweden has already announced they cannot and would not extradite him to the US for that reason..

reply to post by miniatus


Assange is not American therefore he cannot be charged with treason. I don't really care what the Swedish government say, just like my own British government and all governments around the world they are a bunch of lying 2 faced barstewards. No way do they go to all this trouble over a broken condom, it is obviously political motivated. I don't blame him one bit and congratulate the Ecuadorian government on standing up to the western political bullies, about time someone did

Another option for Assange, which is interesting and amusing.. but not without precedent .. is to put him into a crate and MAIL him to Ecuador... that crate is property of the embassy and therefore protected..

This has actually happened before... or attempted at least =)

reply to post by miniatus


I hope he does, because as of now, I haven't seen a reason to put him to death. He has/is exposed(ing) corruption in a glutinous monster. The USA's government just got butt-hurt because someone found out.

Originally posted by miniatus
By law, Sweden cannot extradite someone to a country where they risk death... treason comes with a death penalty ... Sweden has already announced they cannot and would not extradite him to the US for that reason..

Sweden said they wouldn't/couldn't .. as recently as this week..

Well Sweden wouldn't promise that to Ecuador (thus the asylum grant)...

But I look for Ecuador to make assange a citizen and then a diplomat, granting him immunity abroad

As do i...It would be a smart move on Ecuador's part.

Originally posted by miniatus
The US wants Assange, there is no secret there..

However.. he simply CANNOT be extradited to the USA ... Sweden, by law, cannot send him to the US even if the US wants him.. which we all know they do ..

By law, Sweden cannot extradite someone to a country where they risk death... treason comes with a death penalty ... Sweden has already announced they cannot and would not extradite him to the US for that reason..

Sweden said they wouldn't/couldn't .. as recently as this week..

The ONLY way Assange could be extradited is if the USA guaranteed that Assange would not be given a death sentence.... in that case, it's possible..
But I look for Ecuador to make assange a citizen and then a diplomat, granting him immunity abroad.

edit on 8/17/2012 by miniatus because: (no reason given)

Assange didn't commit treason.

Originally posted by th3onetruth
reply to post by miniatus

 

I hope he does, because as of now, I haven't seen a reason to put him to death. He has/is exposed(ing) corruption in a glutinous monster. The USA's government just got butt-hurt because someone found out.

The big problem with what I suggested, as I read more about it ... is that while Ecuador can declare Assange a diplomat... that has to be approved/aknowledged by the host country.. UK is not going to approve that...

One other option is that Ecuador could declare Assange as their UN representative .. the UN could overrule it but that would take time and he would be, for now, instantly immune in the mean time..

He at least has some options

The extradition to the USA is the very least of his worries. Water-boarding is just as effective in any country. Once he is back in the system, he's a goner and knows it.

As is being stated fairly often, he cannot be legally extradited, but he sure can be illegally extradited. Except it's not illegal when they do it.

Originally posted by WildWorld

Originally posted by miniatus
The US wants Assange, there is no secret there..

However.. he simply CANNOT be extradited to the USA ... Sweden, by law, cannot send him to the US even if the US wants him.. which we all know they do ..

By law, Sweden cannot extradite someone to a country where they risk death... treason comes with a death penalty ... Sweden has already announced they cannot and would not extradite him to the US for that reason..

Sweden said they wouldn't/couldn't .. as recently as this week..

The ONLY way Assange could be extradited is if the USA guaranteed that Assange would not be given a death sentence.... in that case, it's possible..
But I look for Ecuador to make assange a citizen and then a diplomat, granting him immunity abroad.

edit on 8/17/2012 by miniatus because: (no reason given)

Assange didn't commit treason.

Wrong term... espionage .. it also carries the death penalty and the US has accused him of it.

If he is guilty of espionage for putting the info on the internet wouldn't anyone else who reported on the showed the leaked cables in the media also be guilty of the same crime?
I honestly have no idea since I haven't really followed this.

Originally posted by WildWorld
If he is guilty of espionage for putting the info on the internet wouldn't anyone else who reported on the showed the leaked cables in the media also be guilty of the same crime?
I honestly have no idea since I haven't really followed this.

edit on 17-8-2012 by WildWorld because: (no reason given)

I would think not ...

Leaking the information to the public is one thing.. reporting on the leak is another...

reply to post by WildWorld


Here is some of the best info I could find so far on the Espionage Act. Apparently it was ammended in 1985 so that NON citizens of the U.S. can be arrested for violating it....

Under the statutorily defined crimes of espionage in §§793 and 794, noncitizens would be subject to prosecution only if they actively sought out and obtained or delivered defense information to a foreign government or conspired to do so.

Source

While searching I was kind of amazed that I couldn't find any actual documents of the act itself......

Off to do more digging.

A lot of this is already getting covered in another thread.
US intends to chase assange topic can easily be covered in the topic:
britain threatens to storm equador embassy to get assange
After all, it has already been discussed about who and why they are doing this.
Why another assange thread?
It just makes things messy and harder to follow.
I will be sticking to the original thread, while the same things all get repeated in here

It seems that the police will use heat detection items to restrict Assange from leaving in diplomatic
bags/crates etc...

Police will be equipped with heat detection equipment to beat any attempt to use special diplomatic bags or furniture to aid his escape.

www.dailymail.co.uk... d-embassy--steps-outside-ll-pounce.html

The US just wants to make an example of him. He embarrassed the current administration.

They'd also like to set a precedent for any "future" Assanges, and derail the whole idea of a government with "leaks".

I would not want to be him.

Any wagers Ecuador gets a visit from some economic hitmen, an earthquake perhaps, some type of mere coincidence?