Australian leader says nothing served by US still pursuing Julian Assange

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange (Frank Augstei/AP, File)

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has said there is “nothing to be served” by the ongoing incarceration of Julian Assange as he expressed frustration at the United States’ continuing efforts to extradite the WikiLeaks founder and Australian citizen.

Mr Albanese’s comments on Friday in an Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) interview appeared to escalate diplomatic pressure on the United States to drop the charges against the 51-year-old, who has spent four years in Britain’s Belmarsh Prison fighting extradition to the US.