Snowden has been assisted with legal advice from the Wikileaks organisation, fleeing from Hong Kong to Moscow over the weekend, despite a US request to Hong Kong for his detainment.
Wikileaks said in a statement on Sunday: “He is bound for the Republic of Ecuador via a safe route for the purposes of asylum, and is being escorted by diplomats and legal advisers from WikiLeaks.”
Snowden’s escape from Hong Kong has caused a diplomatic problems after a Hong Kong officials said that “the documents provided by the US government did not fully comply with the legal requirements under Hong Kong law.”
Hong Kong authorities also hinted that they were less than pleased about allegations of US government agents hacking into Hong Kong computer systems, adding “HKSAR government has formally written to the US government requesting clarification on earlier reports about the hacking of computer systems in Hong Kong by US government agencies.”
The US Justice Department said “The US is disappointed and disagrees with the determination by Hong Kong authorities not to honour the request for the arrest of the fugitive.”
Snowden is due to take a flight from Moscow Cuba today on his way to Ecuador – though according to The Guardian, US authorities have now annulled his passport.
The Government of Ecuador has received an asylum request from Edward J. #Snowden
— Ricardo Patiño Aroca (@RicardoPatinoEC) June 23, 2013