Biden asks Ecuador to REJECT Edward Snowden's request for asylum, but President Correa says no decision will be made until the fugitive whistleblower sets foot in the country
- Vice President Biden made his request during a phone conversation with President Rafael Correa on Friday
- Edward Snowden remains in transit area of Moscow airport after leaving Hong Kong on Sunday
By Daily Mail UK, 29 June 2013
Vice President Joe Biden called Ecuador's President Rafael Correa, asking him to reject an asylum request made by fugitive former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden, it was revealed today.
‘They did discuss Snowden, but I don't have additional details,’ Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes told reporters traveling with President Barack Obama in Africa.
It's the highest-level conversation between the U.S. and Ecuador that has been publicly disclosed since Ecuador began considering the possibility of offering Snowden a sanctuary.
High-level talks: Vice President Joe Biden called Ecuador's President Rafael Correa, asking him to reject an asylum request made by fugitive NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden
Public discourse: Ecuadorean President Correa (center) addressed the Snowden case, and his phone conversation with Biden, during his TV show 'Enlace Ciudadano
During his regular Saturday television appearance, President Correa spoke about his phone conversation with Mr Biden, stating that no decision will be made on Showden until he sets foot on Ecuadorian soil, be it in the country itself or in one of its embassies, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Mr Correa added that the NSA leaker 'will have to assume his own responsibilities' for blowing the whistle on secret programs the U.S. intelligence agencies have been using to spy on foreign and domestic targets.
Ecuador's leader also pointed out that the world's attention should be on America's clandestine data collection scheme rather than Snowden's fate.
Earlier this week, Correa said that a letter of safe passage that was allegedly issued to the 29-year-old NSA hacker by an Ecuadorian diplomat stationed in London was void.
Since fleeing Hong Kong to Russia last weekend, Snowden had his U.S. passport revoked, and he is believed to be still holed up in the transit area of a Moscow airport.
Mr Correa also promised that the first ones to be consulted on Snowden’s asylum request ‘would be the U.S. as we did in the [Julian] Assange case with England.’ He was referring to the elusive WikiLeaks founder, who has been staying in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London for nearly a year.
Meanwhile, Ecuador's Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino said on Friday that his government had held talks with Russian officials about when and how Snowden, who has no travel documents, could leave the terminal where he has been staying for a week in a state of legal limbo.
Hideout: He is in the transit area of Sheremetievo airport in Moscow after flying from Hong Kong on Sunday
No sign of Snowden: Passengers wait in the transit area of the airport where Snowden has been for days
Earlier this week, Ecuador revealed it could take months to decide whether to grant asylum to Snowden. He is currently in a transit area of a Moscow airport but it is believed he is hopeful Ecuador will protect him.
Foreign Minister Patino compared Snowden's case to that of Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, who has found refuge in the Ecuadorean Embassy in London.
'It took us two months to make a decision in the case of Assange, so do not expect us to make a decision sooner this time,' Patino told reporters
Asked if Ecuador would provide protection to Snowden while considering his request for asylum, Patino said through a translator that if Snowden 'goes to the embassy, then we will make a decision.'
Patino refused to say what criteria his government would use, but added that it would 'consider all these risks', including whether it could hurt trade with the U.S. and damage Ecuador's economy.
WikiLeaks gave a terse update on Snowden's condition earlier on Wednesday, saying in a statement posted to Twitter that Snowden was 'well'.
Hurdles: Ecuador's Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino said it could take months to secure asylum for Snowden
WikiLeaks says that one of its staffers, Sarah Harrison, was traveling with Snowden, but the statement gave no indication if the update came from her, from Snowden, or from some other source.
In a conference with reporters on Monday, Assange said that he was limited in what he could say about Snowden due to security concerns. He denied reports that Snowden was spending his time at the airport being debriefed by Russian intelligence officers.
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