Australia’s Albanese says no point in US demanding Julian Assange’s extradition

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he was ‘frustrated’ Washington is still seeking the WikiLeaks founder’s extradition despite being aware of what Canberra’s position is

Albanese also expressed concerns over mental health of the Australian national who faces 175 years in US jail for releasing secret American military records

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Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Photo: AAP via Reuters

Published: 2:23pm, 5 May 2023

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Friday he was frustrated for not yet finding a diplomatic fix over the continued detention of Julian Assange and that he remained concerned about the mental health of the WikiLeaks’ founder.

“I know it’s frustrating, I share the frustration,” Albanese told ABC television from London where Assange is being held pending a US extradition case.

“I can’t do more than make very clear what my position is and the US administration is certainly very aware of what the Australian government’s position is. There is nothing to be served by his ongoing incarceration.”

Assange, an Australian citizen, is battling extradition from Britain to the United States where he is wanted on criminal charges over the release of confidential US military records and diplomatic cables in 2010. Washington says the release of the documents had put lives in danger.

Albanese said Australians were failing to understand the reasons for freeing the source who leaked the documents to Assange while he still remained in prison, referring to the release of former US soldier and WikiLeaks source Chelsea Manning.

Assange spent seven years holed up in Ecuador’s embassy in London after being offered refuge but was dragged out by British police in 2019. He has been staying in a prison in London while his extradition case was decided.