Following Ecuador's announcement, Sweden said it took umbrage to the implication it does not guarantee the rights of those in its custody, and called the Ecuadorian ambassador there to a meeting.

"Sweden does not extradite individuals who risk facing the death penalty," a Swedish Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said, implicitly referring to the possibility Assange could be charged with crimes eligible for the death penalty in the United States, with whom it has an extradition agreement.

The Swedish ministry said on its official Twitter account that this was an "unacceptable attempt by Ecuador to stop the Swedish judicial process and the European judicial cooperation."

Assange sought refuge at the embassy five days after the Supreme Court in Britain dismissed his bid to reopen his appeal of the decision to send him to Sweden, his last option in British courts. He is subject to arrest for breaking the terms of his bail, which required that he spend his nights at the home of a supporter outside London, London's Metropolitan Police said the day after he entered the embassy.

Publicly silent since last March, he's set to speak at 2 p.m. Sunday -- two months to the day since he sought asylum -- according to WikiLeaks official Twitter feed.

That same day, foreign ministers from member states of the Union of South American Nations will convene in Guayaquil, Ecuador, to discuss the situation in London, Peru's foreign ministry announced in a statement late Thursday. Ecuador requested the meeting, after which representatives from UNASUR member states talked and agreed to meet, the Peruvian ministry said.