PARIS, July 03, 2013 (AFP) - WikiLeaks chief Julian Assange on Wednesday urged European nations not to bow to US pressure and accept fugitive intelligence leaker Edward Snowden into their countries.

"European Union states, first and foremost France and Germany, should reserve him their warmest welcome, under any status whatsoever," Mr Assange said in an opinion piece, co-written with the head of media-rights group Reporters Without Borders, published in French newspaper Le Monde.