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| Plane Leaves Moscow for Havana Without Snowden | Plane Leaves Moscow for Havana Without Snowden |
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| MOSCOW — A flight from Moscow to Havana took off Thursday afternoon without any sign of Edward J. Snowden, the former security contractor who is wanted in the United States, raising the possibility that his four-day stay in the legal limbo of a Moscow airport transit area — meant to be a stopover on his way to a third country — could stretch into weeks. | MOSCOW — A flight from Moscow to Havana took off Thursday afternoon without any sign of Edward J. Snowden, the former security contractor who is wanted in the United States, raising the possibility that his four-day stay in the legal limbo of a Moscow airport transit area — meant to be a stopover on his way to a third country — could stretch into weeks. |
| President Vladimir V. Putin said two days ago that “the sooner he chooses his final destination, the better for us and for him,” a comment that may have ratcheted up pressure on Mr. Snowden to leave. An extended stay would also seem to narrow Mr. Snowden’s options, allowing American officials to dangle carrots and sticks before countries like Ecuador and Venezuela that are considering granting him asylum. | President Vladimir V. Putin said two days ago that “the sooner he chooses his final destination, the better for us and for him,” a comment that may have ratcheted up pressure on Mr. Snowden to leave. An extended stay would also seem to narrow Mr. Snowden’s options, allowing American officials to dangle carrots and sticks before countries like Ecuador and Venezuela that are considering granting him asylum. |
| A buzz of suspense surrounded Flight 150 to Havana on Thursday. Cuba has been reported as the next stop on Mr. Snowden’s route. But there were no unusual security measures visible as passengers boarded and some two dozen reporters and photographers pressed against the terminal window as the plane backed away from the gate. Journalists from Reuters and ABC, who had booked tickets in hope of interviewing Mr. Snowden, said it appeared he was not on board. | A buzz of suspense surrounded Flight 150 to Havana on Thursday. Cuba has been reported as the next stop on Mr. Snowden’s route. But there were no unusual security measures visible as passengers boarded and some two dozen reporters and photographers pressed against the terminal window as the plane backed away from the gate. Journalists from Reuters and ABC, who had booked tickets in hope of interviewing Mr. Snowden, said it appeared he was not on board. |
| His delayed departure may be related to negotiations over his asylum application. | His delayed departure may be related to negotiations over his asylum application. |
| Ecuador’s foreign minister, Ricardo Patiño, suggested at a news conference in Malaysia on Wednesday that his government could take months to decide whether to grant Mr. Snowden’s asylum request, and that his country’s relations with the United States would figure in that decision. Later he said the comments had been misconstrued by reporters, and that the decision “could be settled in a day, a week, or, as with Assange, it could take two months.” He was referring to Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, who has been given refuge for the last year in Ecuador’s embassy in London. | |
| The president of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, appeared on television on Wednesday saying that Venezuela had not received an application from Mr. Snowden, but that it would consider granting it. | The president of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, appeared on television on Wednesday saying that Venezuela had not received an application from Mr. Snowden, but that it would consider granting it. |
| “We say and advocate that someone in the world should stand with this young man and protect him,” Mr. Maduro said, during an official visit to Haiti. | “We say and advocate that someone in the world should stand with this young man and protect him,” Mr. Maduro said, during an official visit to Haiti. |
| Mr. Snowden, 30, whose revelations of American surveillance activities abroad have angered the Obama administration and raised a debate about governmental invasion of privacy, remained out of sight on Thursday. | Mr. Snowden, 30, whose revelations of American surveillance activities abroad have angered the Obama administration and raised a debate about governmental invasion of privacy, remained out of sight on Thursday. |
| It was unclear how Ecuador’s deliberations could affect Mr. Snowden in his effort to stay ahead of his American pursuers, who revoked his passport and sought to have him arrested in Hong Kong on charges of violating espionage laws before he fled on Sunday on a flight to Moscow. WikiLeaks, which is assisting Mr. Snowden, has said that Ecuador issued him special travel papers and that it is his ultimate destination. | |
Rick Gladstone contributed reporting from New York. | Rick Gladstone contributed reporting from New York. |