Publishing confidential American diplomatic cables helped stimulate uprisings in North Africa and the Middle East, Wikileaks founder Julian Assange stated on Tuesday.

Assange, who infuriated the government of United States by publishing thousands of the secret cables, said the information that leaked may have persuaded some authoritarian regimes that they could not rely on support of USA, if military force was used on protesters.

To hundreds of students at the Cambridge University union he said that publishing those cables also made it difficult for the West to continue supporting of the long-standing regimes.

"The cables referring to Tunis showed clearly that the U.S., if it came down to a fight between the military on the one hand, and President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali's political regime on the other, the USA would probably support the military," Assange said, and Reuters reported.

"That is something that must have also caused neighbouring countries to Tunisia to think things over. That is that, if they militarily intervened, they may not be on the same side as the United States," he said.

About 800 students attended the talk, many having queued for hours, and they applauded Assange enthusiastically, Reuters reported.