The United Kingdom and Ecuador need to reach a “bilateral solution” in the case of the Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, said Colombia’s foreign minister Maria Angela Holguin on Sunday.
“In the face of the events [between] Ecuador and the United Kingdon regarding the asylum granted to Julian Assange, the Colombian government considers said situation needs to be bilaterally resolved, for which reason we invite the parties to search for a negotiated solution through dialogue,” said Hoguin at a Unasur meeting in Ecuadorean city of Guayaquil.
The Australian citizen Assange was granted political asylum in Ecuador on August 16 after a Swedish court requested his extradition to Sweden on charges of rape.
Ecuadorean president Rafael Correa argued Assange was subject to political persecution and should receive the status of a political refugee.
The 41-year-old Assange has been hiding at the Ecuadorean embassy in London since June 19 in order to avoid an Interpol arrest warrant issued against him.
The events have sparked a diplomatic row between Ecuador and the U.K., with many South American countries, such as Argentina and Venezuela, openly supporting Ecuador’s decision.