According to a high-level Ecuadorian official familiar with the planning, construction of a new naval facility in the coastal city of Manta is part of that preparation, with barracks-style housing and administration offices designed to support sustained operations and US military personnel. The official requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. <\/p>\n
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa has made no secret of his desire for foreign boots on the ground as gangs unleash terror across the country \u2013 a request he is expected to reiterate this weekend. Noboa is set to meet Trump in Florida on Saturday to discuss immigration, trade and \u201csecurity cooperation.\u201d <\/p>\n
Noboa told the BBC he wants the US, Brazil and European nations to join his war on gangs. During an interview in early March, the president claimed Ecuador is dealing with \u201cinternational narco-terrorist\u201d groups and that his country needs the \u201chelp of international forces.\u201d In a local radio interview, he said his government was \u201calready in talks\u201d to receive foreign military support for provinces such as Guayas, known for high crime, but did not specify which countries were involved in the talks. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe have a plan in place with our law enforcement agencies, the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Defense, the armed forces, the Strategic Intelligence Center, and international assistance and support from special forces. That\u2019s essential,\u201d he told Guayaquil\u2019s Radio City. <\/p>\n
Noboa\u2019s efforts are heavily dependent on April\u2019s presidential runoff as he\u2019s set off to face leftist candidate Luisa Gonzalez, who opposes the presence of any foreign force in the country. <\/p>\n
The rapid pace of construction in Manta, the official said, reflects how soon Ecuador hopes international help might arrive. <\/p>\n
The projects are supported by the United States, documents appear to show, and a US representative was present at the signing of the agreement, the Ecuadorian official said. <\/p>\n
One rendering for a floating dock, dated August 2024, is labeled \u201cSouthcom Floating Dock,\u201d an apparent reference to the US Southern Command, also known as Southcom. Another rendering, dated June 2024, has the US State Department\u2019s International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL) logo and the project name of \u201cEquipped Containers for the Ecuador\u2019s Antinarcotics Special Unit and the DEA\u201d and describes the project as an \u201cinternational collaboration with the US Embassy.\u201d <\/p>\n
Plans for these projects have continued under the Trump administration. On March 26, Ecuador\u2019s government announced several US-backed investments \u201cpaused due to geopolitical factors\u201d are resuming in the country, with hundreds of thousands of dollars earmarked for construction of a pier and DEA-linked base. <\/p>\n
There is precedent; the last time US troops operated here was from 1999 to 2009, at the now-defunct Manta Air Base. Back then, they ran surveillance flights targeting drug routes in the eastern Pacific. <\/p>\n
Noboa has also publicly asked the Trump administration to designate Ecuadorian armed groups as terror organizations, as it has already done for several organized crime groups in the region. Such a designation could potentially empower the US government to use military force abroad in combatting the groups. <\/p>\n
Ecuador now has the highest homicide rate in Latin America, according to InSight Crime \u2013 recording nearly twice as many killings as Mexico. The surge is fueled by drug trafficking routes, turf wars, and alliances between local gangs and foreign cartels. <\/p>\n
Despite the sweeping operations, many officials admit the violence feels more like it\u2019s being managed than curtailed. Still, dozens of arrests were made. <\/p>\n
\u201cCartels, gangs and other transnational criminal organizations in our part of the world are engaging in a wide array of illicit activity, from narcotics trafficking to money laundering, smuggling of illegal immigrants and human trafficking, which endanger the health, welfare and safety of everyday Americans,\u201d Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said during her testimony before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence on Tuesday. <\/p>\n
Ecuador\u2019s location \u2013 flanked by the world\u2019s top cocaine producers, Peru and Colombia \u2013 and its deep-water ports make it a key transit point for narcotics. But its vulnerability goes beyond geography. <\/p>\n
The dollarized economy and historically loose visa policies make it easy for criminal networks to move money and people. And corruption, experts say, greases the wheels. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s widespread and far-reaching,\u201d said James Bargent of InSight Crime. \u201cCorruption is rampant from low-level police to the upper echelons of political power, and this facilitates trafficking and provides protection to the criminal groups involved.\u201d <\/p>\n
In Dur\u00e1n, one of the country\u2019s most violent cities, Police Chief Roberto Santamaria acknowledged corruption among police. He said they sometimes employ random polygraph testing and check bank accounts for unusual activity to try to root out corrupt officers. <\/p>\n
Noboa has framed his crackdown as both a domestic fight and a global plea for help. Ahead of the runoff election set for April 13, he has positioned himself as a hardliner on security. In January, he and his wife were seated front and center at Trump\u2019s inauguration, applauding as the president vowed to fight cartels and restore \u201claw and order.\u201d <\/p>\n
Unlike Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, who has firmly rejected foreign troops\u2019 involvement against cartels in her country, Noboa is actively seeking it. His face-to-face meeting with Trump this weekend is expected to be his most direct appeal yet for US backing. <\/p>\n
Before leaving for Florida, Noboa also addressed Ecuador\u2019s improving ties with the US on Friday. \u201cWe\u2019re one of the few countries where cooperation programs are being resumed,\u201d Noboa said to Radio Centro. \u201cWe are working on security, on providing jobs so that people don\u2019t leave. And the US has honored that relationship.\u201d <\/p>\n
Ecuador\u2019s efforts aren\u2019t limited to government partnerships. This month, Noboa announced a \u201cstrategic alliance\u201d with Erik Prince, the founder of the private military firm formerly known as Blackwater. <\/p>\n
The partnership \u2013 which Noboa described as part of his plan to fight narcoterrorism and illegal fishing \u2013 was met with sharp criticism inside Ecuador, including from a former Army commander who warned of turning to a \u201cmercenary army.\u201d Still, it signals how far Noboa is willing to go to bring in outside support. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re helping with training in urban warfare \u2026 and bringing new technology,\u201d Noboa said Friday, speaking on Prince\u2019s involvement. \u201cThey\u2019ve operated in a dozen countries \u2013 including the US.\u201d <\/p>\n
For Noboa, foreign support isn\u2019t a distant hope \u2013 it\u2019s a strategy already in motion. Ecuador is expanding military infrastructure, clearing political hurdles, and making its case to the region, to its citizens, and now, directly to the United States. <\/p>\n
Whether that help arrives \u2013 or arrives soon \u2013 remains to be seen. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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