Julian Assange has received Ecuadorian nationality in December 2017. Following this, Ecuador following then purported, in January, to grant him the status of a diplomat in the UK. This gave rise to new claims that the UK now has the ‘legal obligation to allow Assange to leave the Ecuadorian embassy in London without arresting him‘.

Ecuador conferring its nationality on Julian Assange raises some interesting questions about the interface between citizenship and diplomatic immunity and diplomatic status. The question about whether or not the conferment of nationality might raises questions in terms of the genuine link theory.

Read more in the EJIL.

For details of current and past citizenship legislation in Ecuador, check out our country profile pages.