No talks to stop Assange: US ambassador
- — 01 December, 2010 12:04
The US and Australian governments have had no discussions about any plans to apprehend the Australian founder of the controversial WikiLeaks site, US Ambassador, Jeff Bleich, says.
"That's for the law enforcement authorities," he told reporters in Canberra on Wednesday.
Julian Assange is wanted by Interpol in relation to allegations of sex crimes in Sweden.
However, it is his publication of more than 250,000 classified US documents that is most worrying Washington at the moment.
Asked if the Obama administration was talking with Canberra about stopping Assange, Bleich was categorical. "No," he said.
The immediate focus for the embassy and the wider State Department was to protect individuals who are named in the diplomatic cables.
"We are very disappointed with the release of the documents," Bleich said.
Asked whether he was worried that yet-to-be-released cables might mention Australia, the ambassador said he was not overly concerned.
