Deadlock in Julian Assange saga continues Assange shot to international attention in 2010, when his anti-secrecy Web site released a huge cache of confidential military and diplomatic cables, enraging the U.S. government. Army Pfc. Bradley Manning is on trial at Fort Meade in Maryland over allegations that he gave classified material to WikiLeaks. A year ago this Wednesday, Assange dramatically sought refuge in the Ecuadorian Embassy - next to Harrods in London's salubrious Knightsbridge area - in a bid to avoid extradition to Sweden, where authorities want to question him about alleged sex crimes. Assange, who denies wrongdoing, walked into the embassy five days after he lost a marathon legal battle in the British courts, which ultimately upheld an extradition warrant from Sweden. But Sweden has been unable to enforce the warrant because Ecuador has granted the 41-year-old Australian political asylum, acknowledging Assange and his supporters" fears that if he is sent to Sweden, he risks being handed over to the United States and tried for espionage. In a statement, Britain's Foreign Office said that a working group will formed to find a resolution, but that "no substantive progress was made" in talks Monday, adding that Britain was clear that "any resolution would need to be within the laws of the United Kingdom." Assange may be holed up, but he has remained active with WikiLeaks, which over the past year has published several troves of documents, including a searchable volume of intelligence records from the 1970s and 2.4 million e-mails related to Syria. Connected to the world via video link and the Internet, Assange frequently weighs in on issues such as Edward Snowden, the former National Security Agency contractor who leaked information about the agency's secret surveillance programs; the WikiLeaks movie "The Fifth Estate," starring Benedict Cumberbatch; and why Australians should vote for the WikiLeaks Party in upcoming elections. Sometimes, Assange takes a break from work to look out a window that overlooks a small cluster of supporters who gather daily outside the embassy. "Julian knows we are here, and he appreciates it very much," said Clara Torres, 62, a retired nurse from Chile, who was standing outside the Ecuadorian Embassy, carrying a placard that read "Don't shoot the messenger." She then pointed to the five police officers within view, including one stationed in a glass stairwell that she said faced Assange's room. The cost of around-the-clock policing - officers are ready to arrest Assange the moment he steps outside the embassy - has exceeded $5 million, a London police spokesman said.