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China denounced today the complicity between the U.S. and the UK over the Julian Assange case.
"The U.S. and Britain are cooperating in cross-border crackdowns on certain individuals," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said.
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According to Wenbin, the British government's decision to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to the U.S. shows the hypocritical stance of the governments of these countries on press freedom.
"People are free to expose other countries but subject to severe punishment if they expose the U.S.," the Chinese spokesman denounced, adding that "while for other countries it is political persecution to hold the press accountable, it is legal for themselves to suppress the press."
Wenbin also warned that all eyes are on Assange's human rights conditions while expressing hope that justice will prevail over abuse and hegemony in the end.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Wang Wenbin: "All eyes are on Assange’s human rights conditions and what may become of him. Let us hope and believe that at the end of the day, fairness and justice will prevail. Hegemony and abuse of might will certainly not last forever" pic.twitter.com/BHahITKg3D
— Friends of Socialist China (@socialist_china) June 20, 2022
Assange faces 18 charges in the U.S. under the Espionage Act for leaking classified documents in 2010 and 2011, which the U.S. government claimed broke the law and endangered lives.
The WikiLeaks founder revealed the human rights abuses and war crimes committed by the U.S. in Guantánamo, Iraq, and Afghanistan.
On June 17, the British government approved the journalist's extradition to the U.S., where he could face up to 175 years in prison for alleged espionage violations. Assange's defense now has 14 days to appeal the decision.
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