Just when you thought Julian Assange had gone a bit quiet, the founder of Wikileaks has popped up again doing his best to try and win friends and influence people by addressing the United Nations in New York and courting more controversy in the process. He spoke from the Ecuadorean Embassy in London via - not the most audible of videolinks - thanking the country for granting him political asylum and helping him to be a 'free man'.

The Australian's fighting extradition to Sweden, where he's wanted to answer allegations of rape. If that happens and after the judicial process there, Assange fears he'll then be passed onto the US, where he believes his life will be in danger. The Obama administration is angry about him releasing thousands of secret military documents via his Wikileaks website. In the link, he bemoaned what he called the country's 'persecution' of his website.

Assange says: "There are times for words and there are times for action. The time for words has run out. It is time for the U.S. to cease its persecution of WikiLeaks, to cease its persecution of our people and to cease its persecution of our alleged sources. It is time for President Obama to do the right thing and join the forces of change, not in fine words, but in fine deeds."

Ecuadorian foreign minister, Ricardo Patino, will meet the British Foreign Secretary, William Hague, at the UN in New York to discuss what happens next with Assange.

Written and presented by Marverine Cole.