Bolivia denies Snowden presidential plane rumour The Edward Snowden case provided a new burst of intrigue on Tuesday evening when Bolivian officials said an aeroplane carrying President Evo Morales had been redirected to Vienna on suspicions that the US fugitive was onboard. Bolivia's foreign minister said the plane, en route to La Paz from Moscow, landed in Austria after France and Portugal refused access to their airspace. Speaking to reporters at Vienna airport, David Choquehuanca said the rumour that Mr Snowden was on the plane was a "huge lie." He said France and Portugal would have "to explain to us why they cancelled" permission to use their airspace. "We want to express our displeasure because this has put the president's life at risk," Mr Choquehuanca said. Bolivian defence minister Ruben Saavedra described the incident as a "plot by the government of the United States." While protesters who had gathered outside the French embassy in La Paz called for the ambassador to be expelled. The circumstances surrounding the plane's flight path and its rerouting to Austria could not be immediately confirmed. The US state department refused to comment. Bolivia and Venezuela appear to be the only countries among the more than 20 Mr Snowden has asked to give him asylum that are seriously considering his request. The former US National Security Agency contractor has been holed up in Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport after leaving Hong Kong where he revealed details about secret surveillance programmes. The US has charged him with a number of crimes and revoked his passport, complicating his efforts to leave Moscow. Mr Morales, who was in Moscow for a gas summit along with his Venezuelan counterpart, Nicolas Maduro, told the Russia Today television network on Tuesday that his country had not yet received an asylum request from Mr Snowden. But Mr Morales said that if one were made, "we are ready to debate, analyse that issue." Asked directly if he would grant asylum, he replied: "Yes, why not?" Moscow had said earlier on Tuesday that Mr Snowden had withdrawn his application for asylum in Russia. Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for President Vladimir Putin, said he had "abandoned this idea and his request for permission to stay in Russia." Mr Peskov said Russia had no plans to kick the 30-year-old American out of Sheremetyevo airport. "The extradition of Snowden to such a country as the United States, which applies the death penalty, is impossible," Mr Peskov said. But he suggested that Moscow was not anxious for Mr Snowden to stay, echoing comments on Monday by Mr Putin. Mr Snowden's ties to WikiLeaks are also undermining his attempts to evade US authorities. People familiar with the matter said Julian Assange, the WikiLeaks founder, has angered some pockets of the Ecuadorean government by lobbying for Mr Snowden to be given asylum in that country. Wiki­Leaks has been closely involved in Mr Snowden's attempts to find a refuge after he leaked NSA documents to The Guardian and Washington Post. Sarah Harrison, a WikiLeaks representative, travelled with Mr Snowden from Hong Kong to Russia and submitted asylum requests on his behalf on Monday. However, the document was apparently issued without proper consultation with the Ecuadorean government in Quito, which says it learnt of the travel paper only when Mr Assange mentioned it publicly. "The problem was that Assange opened his mouth and said Snowden was carrying the [travel] document," said one person familiar with the circumstances. Mr Snowden was thought to have planned to fly from Moscow to Havana and then on to Quito, but he did not board his plane in Moscow. On Tuesday, Ecuador's foreign minister, Ricardo Patiño, said on Twitter that the country had not completely withdrawn its offer to consider asylum. We haven't taken even one step back," Mr Patiño wrote. However, he later said Quito was not working to help Mr Snowden travel to Ecuador. And, asked on Tuesday whether he would like to meet Mr Snowden, Ecuador President Rafael Correa replied: "Not particularly.