Ecuador’s new President Daniel Noboa is heralding in a new national security partnership with the United States. Together, they will blow the lid off the country’s growing drug trafficking crisis. Joint operations start in March and will include the US Southern Command. Combined, these moves will help address the out of control illegal drug trade that has long since taken hold in Ecuador. This partnership is especially critical as the country grapples with escalating violence and crime tied to drug traffickers. In recent years it has taken on that title as one of the most dangerous countries in Latin America.
In recent months, Ecuador has experienced a tragic increase in violence as drug cartels have established a foothold within the country. About 70% of drugs produced in Colombia and Peru transit through Ecuador. This platform exacerbates the pressures that local governments are required to bear. The ever-increasing cost of violence has led President Noboa to ask for international assistance. As a result, he is now working alongside the US military.
Joint Operations and Strategic Goals
These joint operations will make use of a newly located US military-led taskforce, with expertise in intelligence collection on drug cartels. This taskforce, or a similar structure, has shown to be successful in the past. Most significantly though, perhaps, it was responsible for all-time greatest Mexican military operation, a raid that killed heartless crime boss Macho Oseguera, aka El Mencho.
President Noboa has made a big show of their strategic nature. He stated, “In March, we will conduct joint operations with our regional allies, including the United States.” Targeting and details of these operations, which will be offensive, were confirmed by the Ecuadorian Defense Ministry but will be classified in nature.
This partnership comes on the heels of an unsuccessful referendum in November. Voters overwhelmingly disapproved of Noboa’s plan to reopen an Ecuadorian US military base that has previously closed. Even with this cancellation as a setback, since December the US has deployed Air Force personnel on a temporary basis to the former Manta base. As a result, this development deepens military ties between the two countries.
Addressing Violence and Implementing Measures
As part of the broader effort to control the violence exacerbated by drug trafficking, a curfew has been announced in Ecuador’s four most violent provinces: Guayas, Los Rios, Santo Domingo de los Tsachilas, and El Oro. To implement this, let’s suspend punitive curfews from March 15 – March 30. The government hopes these measures will restore order and provide a safer environment for its citizens during this tumultuous period.
Those numbers tell the stark story of a three-fold increase in Ecuador’s homicide rate over the past five years. This shocking development has underscored the critical need for change. Yet this trend has put more pressure on the recently inaugurated President Noboa’s administration to act swiftly and decisively to quell escalating drug-related violence and crime.
