Ecuador’s Moreno Prepared to Sell-Out Assange for IMF Payoff, Now ‘Auditing’ His Asylum, Citizenship

As 21WIRE outlined in its annual Year in Review Report, 2018 was the year in which concerted moves between the US and Ecuadorian governments became visible, with the two states conspiring in behind closed doors to try bring WikiLeaks’ founder Julian Assange to America for an unlawful trial based on trumped-up and specious legal claims, including those made by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo who has repeatedly accused WikiLeaks of being “a non-state hostile intelligence service.” In normal times, Julian Assange and Wikileaks would be classed as a publisher and therefore should be protected under freedom of the press. This fundamental principle is something which the corporate mainstream media cartel has neglected to spell out to their own readerships – which should call into question their own legitimacy as members of the “free press.”

Ecuador’s previous president, Rafael Correa, understood the gravity and importance of the Assange case, and extended diplomatic protection and granted citizenship to Assange. However, the current president, Lenín Moreno, was quick to stab Assange in the back as soon as Washington’s hawks began circling. Moreno’s betrayal of his government’s previous observation of international law appears to down to favors (as well as likely threats) from Washington DC.One concession might be a financial bailout for Ecuador, courtesy of the International Monetory Fund (IMF).  There is also another outstanding issue – a judgement of liability against oil giant Chevron for its role in destroying Ecuador’s environment and rainforest.

Taking both of these factors into account, Moreno could very well be involved in one of the biggest international bribery (or extortion) cases in history. In the latest episode of this drama, The price (or payoff) for delivering the head of Julian Assange? A cool $10 billion.

RT International reports…

Ecuador has begun a “Special Examination” of Julian Assange’s asylum and citizenship as it looks to the IMF for a bailout, the whistleblowing site reports, with conditions including handing over the WikiLeaks founder.

Former Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa tweeted an image of the letter he received from the State Comptroller General on December 19, which outlines the upcoming examination by the Direction National de Auditoria.

La última de Contraloría:
“Examen especial” al otorgamiento de asilo a Julian Assange.
Eso es tan “procedente” como hacer un examen especial al nombramiento de un ministro.
Ya que gobierne nomás Celi, el contralor impostor.
Por su odio y persecución, somos el hazmerreír del mundo pic.twitter.com/ipOMaqFIB5

— Rafael Correa (@MashiRafael) January 2, 2019

The audit will “determine whether the procedures for granting  asylum and naturalization to Julian Assange were carried out in accordance with national and international law,” and will cover the period between January 1, 2012 and September 20, 2018.

Assange has been in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London since he sought asylum there in 2012. He was granted Ecuadorian citizenship last December in a bid to protect him from being extradited to the US where he fears he faces secret charges for publishing US government cables and documents.

READ MORE: US ‘secretly charged’ Assange, prosecutor accidentally reveals – WikiLeaks

“Because of their hatred and persecution, we are the laughingstock of the world,” Correa said of the audit.

Ecuador has initiated a formal “Special Examination” of Julian Assange’s asylum and nationality (nationals cannot be extradited) as it seeks a $10billion+ IMF bailout for which the US government demanded handing over Assange and dropping environmental claims against Chevron. https://t.co/utZe5Wjer4

— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) January 2, 2019

WikiLeaks tweeted the news on Wednesday, joining the dots between the audit and Ecuador’s consideration of an International Monetary Fund bailout. The country owes China more than $6.5 billion in debt and falling oil prices have affected its repayment abilities.

According to WikiLeaks, Ecuador is considering a $10 billion bailout which would allegedly come with conditions such as “the US government demanded handing over Assange and dropping environmental claims against Chevron,” for its role in polluting the Amazon rainforest…

Continue this story at RT International

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