By Jaime Ortega.
he U.S. diplomatic relations lean once again on unstable grounds now challenged by Russia, after Edward Snowdens ghost stay in Hong Kong, under China’s supervision.
The competing demands and rolling developments in the case paint a picture of a complicated diplomatic tussle with no easily discernible outcome. It has created an embarrassment for the Obama administration, but also challenged relations between the U.S. and other countries, not just Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, who confirmed that Snowden had arrived in Moscow as a transit passenger despite speculation to the contrary, rebuffed US demands on Tuesday.
“We can only extradite any foreign citizens to such countries with which we have signed the appropriate international agreements on criminal extradition,” Putin said, adding that as Snowden had committed no crime on Russian soil, he is free to travel at will.
“Snowden is a free person. The sooner he chooses his final destination, the better it is for him and Russia,” Putin continued.
Edward Snowden flight continues to generate unknowns. Solved the mystery of your current location, the former coach of the CIA remains in the transit area of the Moscow International Airport. The big question now is where is he headed after being responsible for the massive cyber espionage filtration.
Although Ecuador seems to be the dream destination for Snowden, the Ecuadorian authorities now say they have not provided any official document or any pass to travel without a passport. However, the Univision network has released in a exclusive report that Snowden will eventually pass that barrier, to complete his journey from Moscow to Quito.
The document in question is dated to June 22 and has the signature of Fidel Narváez, Consul of Ecuador in London, the same who hosted Julian Assange for more than one year. According to Univision, the text uses the official stationery of the Chancellery of Ecuador, but it is not technically an asylum request but more of an “humanitarian traffic.”
Galo Galarza, the Ecuadorian Foreign Ministry charged while on tour Ricardo Patiño, has denied the assertions of the founder of Wikileaks, who said that Snowden had the pass. “That’s not true, no passport, we have not given him any document by any Ecuadorian consulate,” he assured.
State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell — asked repeatedly Wednesday about the possibility of Snowden being stuck in travel limbo — told reporters that one possibility is the U.S. could issue him a document that allows him to take a one-way flight back to the U.S.
“That’s the kind of travel document we’re prepared to issue an individual accused of serious crimes,” he said, adding that U.S. officials continue to make the case to the Russians that “there’s a basis” for his return to the U.S.
