Venezuela and Nicaragua Offer NSA Leaker Asylum; Update- Bolivia Offers Asylum To Snowden

By Susan Duclos

[Update on Bolivia's offer below the video]

While it was reported yesterday that  Venezuela's president Nicolas Maduro had agreed to offer Edward Snowden, the man who leaked documents showing the extent of Barack Obama's domestic and international spying, which has caused the Obama administration headaches both in the U.S. and across the world, asylum.

Reports now indicate that Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega has said "if circumstances permit," he too will offer Snowden asylum from the U.S., who has charged him with espionage and theft.

President Maduro made his announcement in a speech on Venezuela's Independence Day.

"As head of state and government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela I have decided to offer humanitarian asylum to the young US citizen Edward Snowden so he can come to the fatherland of Bolivar and Chavez to live away from the imperial North American persecution," President Maduro said.

The US wants to prosecute Mr Snowden over the leaking of thousands of classified intelligence documents.

Earlier Mr Ortega said Nicaragua had received an application at its embassy in Moscow.
"We are open, respectful of the right to asylum, and it is clear that if circumstances permit it, we would receive Snowden with pleasure and give him asylum here in Nicaragua," Agence France-Presse quoted the Nicaraguan president as saying. (Source- BBC)

Getting Snowden from the Moscow airport to any country offering him asylum is a whole different ballgame, as evidenced Bolivian president Evo Morales' plane being forced to land because it was believed Snowden was on board. France, Spain, Portugal and Italy all closed their airspace and refused Morales passage which has sparked outrage among Latin America leaders and official complaints are being lodged with the UN. Latin American leaders are calling the incident an "imperialist hijack."

France has already apologized:

“The Foreign Minister called his Bolivian counterpart to tell him about France's regrets after the incident caused by the late confirmation of permission for President Morales' plane to fly over (French) territory," French Foreign Ministry’s spokesman Philippe Lalliot said in a statement.

Morales has threatened to close the U.S. embassy in Bolivia over this incident as the news clip below shows.


[Update] Bolivia is now offering Edward Snowden asylum as well.

Morales said: “I just want to say to the Europeans and Americans: we are going to give asylum if that American [Snowden] who is haunted by his countrymen asks us for it. We have no fear.”