William Hague to the Swedish authorities who had requested his extradition; thus Swedish prosecutors, unwilling to break diplomatic protocol, have deferred from interrogating Assange at the Embassy of Ecuador, London. Hague confirmed the British Government's position – that it is lawfully obliged to extradite Julian Assange. "We're disappointed by the statement by Ecuador's Foreign Minister today that Ecuador has offered political asylum to Julian Assange. Under our Laws, with Mr. Assange having exhausted all options of appeal, the British authorities are under a binding obligation to extradite him to Sweden. We must carry out that obligation and of course we fully intend
Julian Assange according to multiple reporting outlets, in respect to Assange's status, outlines the necessity for "third countries" to allow for "safe passage" out of an embassy. Commentators have noted the near absence of this ruling from the American media. There have been inaccurate reports claiming the opinion does not mention Assange specifically, however there have also been accurate reports that recognise Assange's case is in fact mentioned by name. Among these is an article published by the VIPS Steering Group which concludes "It is imperative[...] that Assange is allowed to make the safe passage to Ecuador demanded by the Court". Jennifer