UK holds fresh talks over Julian Assange's future

The UK and Ecuador are holding ongoing talks over the fate of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, the British government has confirmed.

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange. Picture: Carl Court/Getty Images

Mr Assange, 47, has been living in Ecuador’s London embassy since 2012 when he was granted political asylum.

Ecuador’s President Lenin Moreno said that he was never “in favour” of Mr Assange’s activities, and that both sides were in permanent contact.

Mr Moreno has previously referred to Mr Assange as a “stone in our shoe”.

The Ecuadorean president was in London this week for a global disabilities summit, but a UK government spokesperson said Mr Assange was not discussed during his visit.

Mr Moreno said any eviction of Mr Assange from the embassy must be carried out properly through dialogue. The Australian will be arrested by UK police if he leaves the embassy for breaching bail conditions.

The bail relates to sexual assault allegations he faced in Sweden. His six-year-old arrest warrant was upheld in February. Although Sweden has dropped its rape investigation, Mr Assange believes his arrest for breach of bail would lead to extradition to the US.