Key Points
- Wikileaks founder Julian Assange will face a court room in Saipan at 9am Wednesday morning.
- He is expected to plead guilty to one charge.
- The court hearing brings relief to Assange’s family, ending a 14 year saga over the leaking of secret state information.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has arrived in a courtroom in Saipan, a United States territory, where he will face charges 14 years after he leaked troves of secret state information and ended up in a British maximum security prison.
The saga that started with Assange holed up in Ecuador’s London embassy, before leading him to solitary confinement in Belmarsh prison in the United Kingdom, now looks set to end in a Pacific tropical paradise.
A private jet carrying Assange, his support team and Australia’s ambassador to the UK Stephen Smith landed in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, about 6.15am on Wednesday.
The WikiLeaks founder arrived alongside Australia’s ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd at the US District Court just before 8:00am.
Assange, 52, agreed on Tuesday to plead guilty to a single criminal count of conspiring to obtain and disclose classified US national defence documents, according to filings in the US District Court in the territory.
By the end of the day he was on a plane to the islands via Thailand.
What will happen in court today?
Assange will be sentenced for time served at 9am on Wednesday at a hearing in a courtroom about 3500km from Darwin.
An updated court document states that Assange has been summoned to the third floor of the District Court.
There is one count listed: conspiring to unlawfully obtain and disseminate classified information relating to the national defence of the United States, in violation of 18 USC, section 793(g).
Another court document states that US Justice Department officials “anticipate that the defendant will plead guilty to the charge.”
Greg Barnes, long-time advisor to the Australian Assange campaign, told ABC News he doesn’t expect “a lengthy hearing”.
“But it’s not over until it’s over. We look forward to Julian returning to Australia,” he said on Wednesday morning.
Once the proceedings are over, Wikileaks and his family say Assange will be free to return to Australia, which could be as soon as Wednesday evening.
What has the reaction been?
Australia had long called for the US to end its pursuit of Assange, who faced spying charges.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had directly raised the issue with US President Joe Biden and a group of politicians from across Australia’s political spectrum converged on Washington in September to lobby US decision-makers.
“Regardless of the views that people have about Mr Assange’s activities, the case has dragged on for too long,” Albanese said.
Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce commended the “good outcome”, going as far as saying the US government had overstepped the line by trying to convict Assange.
“If you don’t break an offence in Australia, then citizenship would say there’s no threat of you being imprisoned in a third country. That’s the premise of my argument,” he told ABC News Breakfast on Wednesday.
Former US vice president Mike Pence took to X to label the plea deal a “miscarriage of justice”.
“There should be no plea deals to avoid prison for anyone that endangers the security of our military or the national security of the United States. Ever,” he said.
Assange’s family praises government ahead of reunion
Assange’s father John Shipton praised the Australian government for its efforts to end the “persecution” of his son.
“I am absolutely elated — it is as though a huge burden has been lifted,” he told the PA news agency.
Assange’s mother, Christine Assange, said his release showed “the importance and power of quiet diplomacy”.
“Many have used my son’s situation to push their own agendas, so I am grateful to those unseen, hard-working people who put Julian’s welfare first,” she said.
“The past 14 years has obviously taken a toll on me as a mother.”
Assange’s wife Stella said while there had been uncertainty about the situation leading up to her husband being released from prison, she was “elated” by the developments.
On Tuesday night, she made a public call for donations to pay the $US520,000 ($783,000) fee for the jet bringing her husband home.
