Ecuador president says no offer to WikiLeaks chief

[Bacchus39]

QUITO, Ecuador – Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa on Tuesday dismissed an offer of residency that a lower level official made to the embattled founder of the online whistle-blower WikiLeaks.

The offer by Deputy Foreign Minister Kintto Lucas on Monday "has not been approved by Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino — or the president," Correa told reporters.

Patino already had indicated earlier in the day that the leftist government was backing away from providing refuge for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, saying it "will have to be studied from the legal and diplomatic perspective."

Lucas had said Monday that Ecuador was open to giving Assange residence "without any kind of trouble and without any kind of conditions."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101201/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_ecuador_wikileaks_founder