Australian legislators urge the US to withdraw its extradition request for Assange

The 'Bring Julian Assange Home Parliamentary Group' called for the United States to end its attempts to extradite and prosecute Julian Assange during a meeting with US Ambassador Caroline Kennedy in Canberra on Tuesday. The group expressed "widespread concern" at the continued detention in Britain of the WikiLeaks founder, who is an Australian national, as well as attempts to extradite him to the United States to face espionage charges. The Australian parliament had also expressed "broad concern" for Assange, as outlined in statements of support last week by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and opposition leader Peter Dutton. Albanese was a vocal critic of Assange's detention during his election campaign in 2022. Assange is currently in London's Belmarsh prison as he faces espionage charges related to WikLeaks' publication of hundreds of thousands of government documents.

Washington maintains that Assange's actions put the lives of US servicemen in danger, but supporters argue that Assange is being unfairly targeted by Washington. 48 Australian lawmakers co-signed a letter to US Attorney General Merrick Garland in April, calling the pursuit of Assange "a dangerous precedent" for press freedom. US President Joe Biden is scheduled to visit Sydney on May 24 for the Quad Leaders' Summit, but Albanese has not said whether he intends to raise the issue with Biden during his visit.