Kevin Rudd was spotted by Julian Assange’s side when he landed for his performance on a Pacific island after a fourteen-year legal battle.
The 52-year-old arrived in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, an island belonging to the United States, around 6:15 a.m. on Wednesday.
Assange had agreed on Tuesday to plead guilty to a single charge of conspiring to obtain and disclose classified US national defense documents, court documents show.
The WikiLeaks founder was accompanied by Mr Rudd, Australia’s ambassador to the US, who accompanied Assange to the US court.
The couple were both seen wearing black suits, Assange wearing a brown loose tie, as they entered the building.
Both Assange and Rudd appeared relaxed and smiling as they made their way through the waiting camera crews.
Assange had arrived on a private jet that included his team, including Australia’s ambassador to Britain, Stephen Smith.
He will be sentenced later this morning for time served at a hearing in a courtroom about 3,500km from Darwin.
Kevin Rudd was spotted by Julian Assange as he landed for his trial on a Pacific island after a 14-year legal battle
An updated court document states that Assange has been summoned to the third floor of the court.
One count is listed: conspiracy to unlawfully obtain and disseminate classified information relating to the national defense of the United States, in violation of 18 USC, Section 793(g).
Another court document states that U.S. Department of Justice officials “expect the defendant to plead guilty to the charges.”
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.
He had spent five years in a high-security prison at London’s Belmarsh Prison, and seven years in asylum at the Ecuadorian embassy in Britain.
For Assange’s supporters it is a moment of jubilation.
“It’s a great victory for freedom of expression and also for justice,” Greg Barns, SC, legal adviser to Australia’s Assange Campaign, told AAP.
Assange and Rudd are seen walking into the US court in the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific Ocean
‘Julian risked more than 170 years in prison in the US if he had been convicted of the charges for which the Americans wanted to extradite him.’
But former Australian high commissioner to Britain Alexander Downer, who served while Assange sought asylum in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, said he doubted Australians would sympathize with him.
“What he did was a criminal offence, and it was a morally terrible thing to do, and to endanger people’s lives in that way,” he told the BBC.
Australia has long called on the US to end its pursuit of Assange, who faced espionage charges.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had raised the issue directly with US President Joe Biden and a group of politicians from across Australia’s political spectrum met in Washington in September to lobby US decision-makers.
“Regardless of people’s views on Assange’s activities, the case has dragged on for too long,” Albanese said.
Assange’s family has expressed relief at his release, with his father John Shipton praising the Australian government for its efforts to end the ‘persecution’ of his son.
The pair appeared relaxed as numerous media crews waited outside the courthouse
“I am absolutely delighted – it is as if a huge burden has been lifted,” he told the PA’s new 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 agenda, so I am grateful to those invisible, hardworking people who put Julian’s well-being first,” she said.
‘The past fourteen years have obviously taken a heavy toll on me as a mother.’
Assange’s wife Stella said that while there was uncertainty about the situation leading up to her husband’s release from prison, she was “delighted” by the developments.
Assange’s brother Gabriel Shipton told Reuters that “with millions of people who have been advocating for Julian, it’s almost time for a drink and a party.”
Meanwhile, Mrs Assange late on Tuesday night made a public appeal for donations to help pay the $520,000 (about $783,000) compensation for the plane that brought her husband home.