strongLondon:/strong It was a warning meant to remind Ecuador that Britain's patience has limits. But as the stalemate over Julian Assange settled, it appeared London's veiled threat that it could storm Ecuador's embassy and drag Assange out has backfired - drawing supporters to the mission where the WikiLeaks founder is holed up and prompting angry denunciations from Ecuador and elsewhere. Experts and ex-diplomats say Britain's Foreign Office, which warned Ecuador of a little known law that would allow it to side-step usual diplomatic protocols, messed up by issuing a threat it couldn't back up. It was a big mistake, said former British ambassador Oliver Miles. It puts the British government in the position of asking for something illegitimate. Britain's warning was carried in a set of notes delivered to Ecuadorean diplomats Wednesday as they tried to negotiate an agreement over Assange, who has spent nearly two months holed up at the Latin American nation's London mission in a bid to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he's wanted over allegations of sexual assault. The notes, published by Britain on Thursday, said ominously that keeping Assange at the embassy was incompatible with international law. They added: You should be aware that there is a legal basis in the UK - the Diplomatic and Consular Premises Act - which would allow us to take action to arrest Mr. Assange in the current premises of the embassy. [caption id=attachment_422144 align=alignleft width=380