MOSCOW: US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden won support from Cuba for his bid to seek asylum in Latin America as he began his third week in limbo at a Moscow airport yesterday.

Cuba, a key transit point from Russia on the way to Latin America, supported the leaders of Bolivia, Venezuela and Nicaragua, who have offered the 30-year-old fugitive a possible lifeline as he remains marooned without documents in the transit area of a Moscow airport.

“We support the sovereign rights of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and all the regional states to grant asylum to those who are being persecuted for their ideals or their fight for democratic rights, in accordance with our traditions,” Cuban leader Raul Castro said on Sunday.

Speaking to Cuba’s national assembly, Castro did not say whether his country, which has been showing signs of mending ties with Washington, would itself offer refuge to Snowden.

“If Raul Castro’s solidarity on Snowden is serious, Cuba will publicly offer Snowden asylum,” anti-secrecy organization WikiLeaks said on Twitter.

Multiple obstacles continue to cloud the former National Security Agency contractor’s asylum hopes however and it remains unclear how he would be able to leave Russia, even if granted asylum by the three Latin American countries.