Ex-Australian Minister urges Assange's freedom
2 Min Read
Former Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr demands that the US abandon its prosecution of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange.
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Julian Assange
Former Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr demanded on Monday that the US abandon its prosecution of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange.
Last week, Britain's Priti Patel approved the extradition of Assange to the US, causing a global uproar.
Amnesty International warned that the extradition of Assange would put him at great risk and send a chilling message to journalists around the world.
Read more: Assange to fight UK approval of extradition to US
Carr stated in an op-ed for the Sydney Morning Herald that Assange's conviction contrasted sharply with the US pardoning of former military intelligence officer Chelsea Manning, who provided the classified information to Wikileaks.
Carr stated that this was newly elected Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's "most potent argument" for Assange's release.
According to Carr, "If Albanese asks, my guess is America will agree."
"Our new prime minister can say: 'We're not fans of the guy either, Mr. President, but it's gone on long enough. We're good allies. Let this one drop.'"
During his campaign, Albanese is reported to have said "enough is enough," adding that he could not "see what purpose is served" by the ongoing saga against Assange.
Australia's previous conservative government did not openly lobby for Assange's release for much of the last decade.
The long-running legal saga began in 2010 after Assange published more than 500,000 documents classified in the US regarding war crimes committed in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Stella Morris, the wife of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, had told ABC radio that the Australian government has discussed the case with its US counterparts.
"My understanding is that the Australian government is raising it and that is extremely welcome news," she stated.
