At a news conference in Quito, Ecuador's foreign minister Ricardo Patino makes the announcement on the future of controversial WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.<br/> <br />(SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) ECUADORIAN FOREIGN MINISTER, RICARDO PATINO, SAYING:<br/> <br />"Ecuador has decided to grant political asylum to Julian Assange following the request sent to the president."<br/> <br />Patino argued that Assange's security was at risk, that extradition to a third country without proper guarantees was probable, and legal evidence showed he would not have a fair trial if eventually transferred to the United States.<br/> <br />The former computer hacker enraged Washington in 2010 when his file sharing website WikiLeaks published classified U.S. diplomatic cables.<br/> <br />Britain says it's determined to extradite Assange to Sweden, where he's accused of rape and sexual assault.<br/> <br />The UK government has also threatened to storm Ecuador's embassy in London, where Assange sought Asylum two months ago, and break him out - a threat described by Ecuador as "brutal".
