The High Court of London decided this Tuesday to postpone its decision on the appeal in the case of Australian journalist Julian Assange, founder of the WikiLeaks portal, so he will not be extradited to the United States immediately.

Julian Assange, founder of WikiLeaks, has the chance to continue his fight against extradition to the United States, after the High Court in London said the United States had to give more guarantees.

US prosecutors intend to try Assange, 52, on 18 counts over WikiLeaks’ publication of confidential US military files.

In February, Assange’s lawyers asked for permission to challenge British approval of his extradition to the US, arguing that his prosecution was politically motivated.

In their ruling, two senior judges stated that Assange had a real chance of successfully challenging his extradition to the United States on several grounds.

The court has given US authorities the opportunity to provide “satisfactory assurances” on the question of whether he could rely on the First Amendment of the US Constitution and whether he can be sentenced to death.

If those guarantees are not given, then Assange will be granted permission to appeal. A new hearing has been scheduled for May 20.

The United States argues that WikiLeaks’ revelations endangered the lives of its agents and that there was no excuse for their criminality.