Unseen Diplomatic Manoeuvres Helped Unlock Assange Deal

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange walking to board a plane from London, released from a high-security prison where he was held for five years (Credit: AFP)

Behind closed doors, an Australia-US-UK diplomatic dance opened the way for a plea deal to free WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, analysts and a diplomat previously involved in the case told AFP.

The 52-year-old Australian citizen walked out of his five-year visit to London's high-security Belmarsh prison on Monday after agreeing to plead guilty to a single count of revealing US national defence secrets.