WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has pleaded guilty to a criminal charge in Saipan and is set to return to Australia a free man, 14 years after he published classified military documents.
The saga that started with Assange holed up in Ecuador's London embassy, before leading him to solitary confinement in Belmarsh prison in the United Kingdom, has come to an end in a Pacific tropical paradise.
Assange arrived alongside his support team and Australia's ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd at the US District Court in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, just before 8am.
When court resumed after 9am, he was given his oath, introduced his full name to the court and swore to tell the truth.
Chief judge Ramona Manglona told the court that Assange was facing a charge of conspiracy to obtain and disclose national defence information.
The 52-year-old pleaded guilty to the specific charge, which is a violation of 18 USC, section 793(g) and carries a maximum penalty of up to 10 years in prison.
The US federal court accepted the guilty plea.
Speaking outside the courtroom after the verdict, Assange's lawyer Barry Pollack confirmed that the judge determined "no additional incarceration for Mr Assange would be fair", sentencing him to time already served in prison.
Assange spent more than five years in London's Belmarsh prison after being incarcerated there in 2019.
Pollack said that while Assange accepted he had violated the Espionage Act, it was fundamentally flawed and inconsistent with the US Constitution's First Amendment.
"We firmly believe that Mr Assange never should have been charged under the espionage act and engaged in an exercise that journalists engage in every day and we are thankful that they do," he said.
Assange’s brother Gabriel Shipton told SBS World News he made many trips to the US to work with "allies" towards Assange’s release.
"Once you explain to people what is really going on and what is really at stake for them in the US they usually come to support Julian. They understand that it’s not just about him, it’s about their rights.
"This Espionage Act conviction that Julian has pleaded guilty to is actually a threat to journalists all over the world that if you publish this sort of information, the US can use their espionage act to reach into any territory in the world and charge you."
Jennifer Robinson, Assange's longest-serving council member, labelled the verdict "the greatest threat to the First Amendment in the 21st century".
"This prosecution sets a dangerous precedent that should be of concern to journalists everywhere," she said.
"Anyone who cares about free speech and democratic accountability should stand against it. But I want to encourage everyone that stood up and fought for Julian to continue to stand up and fight against this dangerous precedent."
Pollack confirmed Assange would not take questions from the public but was "grateful for all the support that he has received and looks forward to reuniting with his wife and his children and getting back home to Australia".
What will happen next?
WikiLeaks posted Assange's flight path to social media platform X, indicating he boarded a flight to Canberra after leaving the court room in Saipan.
His family, including father John Shipton, are overjoyed to be reunited with Assange.
"Doing cartwheels is a good expression of the joy that one feels that Julian is returned home, well, about to return home," he told ABC News on Wednesday morning.
"There may be some questions to be resolved by the lawyers and the diplomats in the future but having Julian home to an ordinary life after 15 years of incarceration in one form or another — house arrest, jail and asylum in an embassy — is pretty good news."
Assange has been prohibited from re-entering the US.
What has the reaction been?
Australia had long called for the US to end its pursuit of Assange, who faced spying charges.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had directly raised the issue with US President Joe Biden and a group of politicians from across Australia's political spectrum converged on Washington in September to lobby US decision-makers.
"Regardless of the views that people have about Mr Assange's activities, the case has dragged on for too long," Albanese said.
Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce commended the "good outcome", going as far as saying the US government had overstepped the line by trying to convict Assange.
"If you don't break an offence in Australia, then citizenship would say there's no threat of you being imprisoned in a third country. That's the premise of my argument," he told ABC News Breakfast on Wednesday.
Former US vice president Mike Pence wrote on X that the plea deal a "miscarriage of justice".
"There should be no plea deals to avoid prison for anyone that endangers the security of our military or the national security of the United States. Ever," he said.
Assange's family praises government ahead of reunion
Shipton praised the Australian government for its efforts to end the "persecution" of his son.
"I am absolutely elated — it is as though a huge burden has been lifted," he told the PA news 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 agendas, so I am grateful to those unseen, hard-working people who put Julian's welfare first," she said.
"The past 14 years has obviously taken a toll on me as a mother."
Assange's wife Stella said while there had been uncertainty about the situation leading up to her husband being released from prison, she was "elated" by the developments.
On Tuesday night, she made a public call for donations to pay the $US520,000 ($783,000) fee for the jet bringing her husband home.
- Additional reporting by the Australian Associated Press.
