Noboa admits US troops in Ecuador and bombing on the border with Colombia

Amid the advancement of the United States’ policy of intervention in Latin America, the president of Ecuador, Daniel Noboa, indicated that he would accept the presence of US military personnel in Ecuadorian territory and once again defended the deepening of “cooperation” with Donald Trump’s government.

In an interview with broadcaster Univisión, last Sunday (8), the president responded “yes, of course” when asked if he would allow a greater North American military presence in the country.

Noboa also confirmed that the Ecuadorian Armed Forces carried out bombings in the province of Sucumbíos, on the border with Colombia, and held President Gustavo Petro’s government responsible for the advance of drug trafficking — a direct provocation to Bogotá amid growing tension between the two countries.

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During the interview, the Ecuadorian president compared cartels and armed groups in the region to foreign organizations such as Hezbollah, Hamas and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, stating that they “work together” and defending that they be fought in the same way — an argument used by his government to justify the expansion of submission to Washington.

According to Noboa, the Ecuadorian Armed Forces are already carrying out attacks against structures linked to drug trafficking and illegal mining in the Amazon region close to Colombia.

The attacks would mainly target groups known as Border Commands, formed by dissidents from the former FARC that would operate between the Colombian department of Putumayo and the Ecuadorian province of Sucumbíos.

When commenting on the origin of drug trafficking entering the country, Noboa directly blamed the neighboring country. “The vast majority of drugs that enter Ecuador come from Colombia. More than 70% come from Colombia,” he said.

When asked by the reporter about the fact that the United States is the largest consumer of drugs in the world, Noboa preferred to soften the topic.

Instead of blaming the North American market for the dynamics of drug trafficking, he stated that Washington “makes an effort to reduce consumption” and insisted that the problem must be faced “at its source”, that is, in Latin America itself.

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