The Ecuador Partnership
By Cecilia Fountain
3/12/26
On March 8, 2026, the United States and Ecuador announced that they’ve begun a joint military operation to combat narcoterrorism in the South American country. The US Southern Commander (southcom), which has been known to oversee the nation’s military activity in Latin America and the Caribbean, released on March 3rd that Ecuadorian and American military forces had started operations that day “against Designated Terrorist Organizations in Ecuador.” Further, in the announcement the Ecuadorian government stated, “The operations are a powerful example of the commitment of partners in Latin America and the Caribbean to combat the scourge of narco-terrorism,” “Together, we are taking decisive action to confront narco-terrorists who have long inflicted terror, violence, and corruption on citizens throughout the hemisphere.” Commanders have shared little information about this but here’s what we know.
Daniel Noboa, Ecuadorian President said in a post on X that the countries will be conducting joint operations with our regular allies which includes the US in March. He did not provide any details on the scale of the operation or intended target. Noboa has also stated that the security of records is the top priority. The reason for these operations is to hopefully achieve peace and act forcefully against criminals.
The joint military operations in Ecuador is also the latest step in the Trump administration to crack down on drug trafficking in Latin America. The chief of deputies for the White House Stephen Miller has told Latin American defence leaders that military action is absolutely necessary to combat these drug cartels.
This has been another escalation of the US’ own military presence and activity in the region. Although the effect has always been a cover to a part to take down cartels and stop the flow of drug flow into the US, people can’t help but wonder if there’s another reason for the joint operations. In recent years we have seen the US taking over Venezuela with the implication that President Nicolás Maduro was a drug trafficking organization. As well as increase tensions over Cuba which have steamed from earlier conflict colonization and imperialism. But what most similar about the two is that they are a latin country that have had endless opposition to American power. Many wonder if Ecuador is the next to be under US controversy.
What’s even more pressing is will the US use Ecuador to invade other countries? This joint operation will not only be in Ecuador but Ecuadorian officials have stated that they want to move this operation all over Latin America. So even if it doesn’t affect Ecuador it may affect other countries in Latin America that don’t want the US operations in them.
All this is mostly in the air right now. As these operations count we will see how they work and the outcomes from them. For now we can hope for the best, which is stronger peace from taking down actual drug criminals.
https://time.com/7382803/us-ecuador-joint-military-operations-drug-trafficking-cartels/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecuador%E2%80%93United_States_relations#:~:text=Ecuador%20and%20the%20United%20States,participating%20in%20inter%2DAmerican%20organizations.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgjzz4gn64zo
From Cartels to Commerce: Why U.S.–Ecuador Security Cooperation Matters