Expect to hear a lot more out of Ecuador in the news in the near future. It's quickly becoming one of the United States' greatest partners and allies in the Western Hemisphere, especially when it comes to security matters.
In an interview with Univision earlier this week, the country's president, Daniel Noboa, talked about his partnerships with the United States. It took place just after Donald Trump and Marco Rubio's Shield of the Americas summit in Doral, Fla., which Noboa attended as one of 12 heads of state ready to partner with the U.S. on numerous issues, specifically fighting cartels and crime in the Western Hemisphere.
As I've written, Ecuador was once one of the most peaceful countries in Latin America, but over the last decade, it has become one of the most violent. Noboa, who is tough on crime, has been in office for about two years and has been fighting an uphill battle against the criminal organizations that have largely taken over the country. Joe Biden never did too much in the way of helping Ecuador, but that has changed under Trump. In September, Marco Rubio traveled to the country to talk about security and offer U.S. military support. The State Department also designated Los Choneros and Los Lobos, Ecuador's two most prominent criminal organizations, as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists.
Technically, that military assistance began last year, but earlier this month, it escalated. Last Monday, March 3, U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) announced joint operations between our two countries to go after "designated terrorist organizations."
Now, the FBI has opened up its first permanent office inside the U.S. Embassy in Quito. Previously, it worked with Ecuador on an as-needed basis from its Colombian office. The bureau will assist the National Police of Ecuador as a continuation of the Trump administration's goals for the entire region, including fighting drug trafficking, international organized crime, money laundering, arms smuggling, and support for terrorism.
Ecuadorian Minister of the Interior John Reimberg claims that Ecuador's crime has already decreased just since January (the homicide rate is down 34% this year) and that this growing partnership will take that even further.
But back to the Univision interview — when asked what the Shield of the Americas means for Ecuador and the entire region, Noboa was quick to praise the Trump administration.
"Well, it means that we finally have a United States government that is concerned about the hemisphere and is also concerned about the origin of crime, where the problem comes from," he said. "And that's what our region, our countries, drug trafficking, and illegal mining are all about. And they are willing to collaborate with nations to move the country forward and stop drug trafficking, terrorism, and the financing of these organizations."
He added that while the U.S. has the "most powerful military in the world," this is not imperialism. "This is not interventionism on the part of the United States; it is not simply an open door for them to do whatever they want. We are open to collaboration and joint operations," he said, emphasizing that this will not jeopardize the country's sovereignty, but the threat the country and the entire region faces is too significant to go at it alone.
Noboa went on to talk about how the country was heavily focused on securing its northern border with Colombia because that's where the majority of the criminals enter. He blamed Colombia's Gustavo Petro for doing nothing about it in recent years.
The entire interview was quite interesting and educational, but I want to skip to something important that Noboa said. The interviewer asked him if fighting the cartels is similar to the "fight against Hamas, against Al Qaeda," as the Trump administration has indicated.
He pointed out that Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) still have a presence in Venezuela. The Nicolás Maduro regime basically welcomed them with open arms. They initially operated from Venezuela, but they have made their way southwest through Colombia and into Ecuador. According to Noboa, these Middle Eastern terrorist groups are not only present, but they have actually trained the local cartels and narco-terrorist groups.
I'd like to point out that we essentially had an open border for four years, so there's no telling how many of them came here under Biden because it was easy to do. It's the single most important example of why border security is important, as well as why we can't ignore these countries in our backyard as Biden often did, especially the ones willing to work with us for all of our common good.
"So, yes, there is a connection, and a real one. There are money transactions, there's training in camps for former guerrillas, and there's also training with local narco-terrorist groups like the Lobos, the Choneros, and the Tiguerones," he said. "So, there's already enough evidence that they work together. Therefore, they must be treated the same way."
Back in September, after Rubio's visit, Noboa actually designated all three groups as terrorist organizations, warning of their strong presence in Latin America and their ties to local cartels and gangs.
Noboa admitted that he hopes Ecuador will learn from the United States, but he also says that we're learning from Ecuador about things like "how these narco-terrorist groups operated in illegal mines, how they laundered drug money with gold." He said Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and SOUTHCOM have been quite receptive to the information and are adjusting accordingly.
Noboa also said he won't stop until he's done: "We are not a proxy of the United States, we are an ally, we are a partner and we are going to continue working together to move forward, to move forward for the country, to move forward for Ecuador. My sole reason for being president of the Republic is to improve the lives of Ecuadorians. That will always be my priority, and we hope for the support of the United States to help us move forward."
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