Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa met with on Monday a high-level mission of the United States government to find the most appropriate mechanisms for cooperation in security and defense that will enable the Andean country to face the fight against organized crime and drug trafficking, which have triggered an uncontrollable spiral of violence.
Noboa, together with his defense ministers, interior ministers and others from the security axis, claimed: a reserved session with Christopher Dodd, Special Envoy of the President of the United States for America, and with General Laura Richardson, Commander of the Southern Command.
At the end of the meeting, the Ecuadorian Foreign Minister Gabriela Sommerfeld assured that the presence of this delegation “is a strong and concrete political signal of support…in the armed conflict against terrorism, drug trafficking and transnational organized crime” aimed at restoring peace to Ecuadorians.
In addition, he mentioned that it is a priority for Ecuador to expand access to markets for goods and services, attract investments and financing as part of measures to create the well-being and development of Ecuadorians, and establish arrangements for orderly migration.
Christopher Dodd, Special Envoy of the President of the United States for America, and General Laura Richardson. Photo: AFPThe visiting delegation also included Deputy Undersecretary of the Office of Drug Enforcement and Law Enforcement Affairs, Christopher Landberg.
“The United States and the world have seen what is happening in Ecuador and know how important it is to protect Ecuador,” Noboa said in an interview with Teleamazonas television before receiving the visitors, in which he assured that the country “did it” becomes a key element in the structure and routes of these narco-terrorist groups.”
Regarding US support, Noboa pointed out that Ecuador also needs “something substantial” at the same time: Refinancing of foreign debt…so that while we fight this war we don't get stuck financially.”
The wave of uncertainty
Since the beginning of 2021, organized crime gangs linked to the drug trade have unleashed a wave of insecurity with violent deaths, extortions, kidnappings and repeated prison riots, which seemed to reach new levels last week when a group of hooded men attacked a television station took over with weapons and explosives, which was broadcast live.
Noboa receives the North American delegation. Photo: AFPA few days earlier, Adolfo Macías alias Fito, the dangerous leader of the country's largest criminal organization, Los Choneros, disappeared from a prison in Guayaquil, and then another regional leader of another gang, Fabricio Pico, escaped, who could not be located there.
Noboa then declared a state of internal war to counter the rampant criminal violence with the support of combined military and police groups that maintained a strong presence on the streets.
“We are at war and we have managed to stop an avalanche of violence and destruction,” the Ecuadorian president said, emphasizing that indicators of violent deaths and crime have fallen dramatically.
The army, on theirs 22 tons of cocaine hydrochloride who allegedly flew “light aircraft to the markets of Asia, Europe and North and Central America”.
He added that the operation was a consequence of more than six months of observation strategies and surveillance by military intelligence.
The operation took place near the town of Vinces, 201 kilometers southwest of the capital, and the seizure represents a new record in a single operation after police neutralized 14 tonnes in October last year.
The government is waiting for the Assembly to pass an asset confiscation law to use the assets and funds of criminal groups in the fight against them. In addition, the Constitutional Court must approve a new agreement with the United States to facilitate the fight against the groups the government describes as narco-terrorists.
In his X account, General César Zapata, police commander, stated that he was arrested on Sunday night Carlos L., aka El Gringo, which he defined as “a high-value goal.” Leader of the Oliver Sinisterra armed group from Colombia, linked to terrorist activities in the Ecuadorian province of Esmeraldas, on the border with that country.
He added that the arrest was possible after three months of investigation. This group is among the dissidents of the extinct guerrilla Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), which controls part of the Colombia-Ecuador border.
Noboa insisted on the proposal to free up space in prisons by repatriating around 1,500 prisoners, particularly from Colombia and Peru, for which he said he is in contact with the governments of these countries. He also confirmed that he is sticking to the proposal to build two new prisons.
To address the conflict situation, the president said he was preparing $1 billion in cuts in the state structure, particularly in administrative and personnel costs, “because the state needs to tighten its belt and make a significant sacrifice.”
With information from The Associated Press