Delegation of senior US representatives will visit Ecuador starting this Monday

The Special Presidential Advisor for the Americas, Christopher Dodd, will lead a delegation from the Government of USA, who will visit Ecuador between tomorrow and next Thursday, the US Embassy in Quito.

The delegation will also be made up of the Commander of the United States Southern Command (Southcom), Army General Laura Richardson, and the Deputy Undersecretary of the Office of Counternarcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, Christopher Landberg.

The senior officials, along with other civil and military officials, will visit the South American country to listen and consider options to accelerate bilateral security cooperation and analyze collaborative approaches to confront the threats posed by transnational criminal organizations.

The agenda of the US delegation in Ecuador includes meetings with the president, Daniel Noboa, and the heads of the ministries of Defense, Government, Foreign Relations, as well as Economy and Finance.

Furthermore, with senior officials from the law enforcement and justice sector; as well as with representatives of civil society at the forefront of the fight against corruption.

This will be the second visit to Ecuador of presidential advisor Dodd and General Richardson.

Richardson will also meet with men and women serving in the Ecuadorian Armed Forces during events held at various commands, units and facilities in the country.

Security cooperation between the United States and Ecuador focuses on shared objectives and interests, including collaboration and information exchange to combat transnational criminal organizations, bilateral and multinational capacity-building exercises, and humanitarian assistance missions, he indicated. the Embassy in the statement.

Other bilateral commitments include exchanges of experiences, conferences and training events on disaster preparedness, cyber defense, space cooperation, maritime security, aviation, human rights, communications and logistics, the letter states.

Last Wednesday, President Noboa confirmed that he will gladly accept the cooperation of the United States to combat organized crime within the framework of the “internal armed conflict”declared by his Government and requested equipment, weapons and intelligence.

“I would gladly accept the cooperation of the United States. “We need equipment, we need weapons and we need intelligence,” Noboa said in an interview with CNN after having controlled the crisis of violence experienced on January 9 in his country.

Internal armed conflict

The US mission will arrive at a time when a state of emergency is in force in Ecuador, with a night curfew, as well as the declaration of an internal armed conflict against organized crime groups.

Last week there was a wave of attacks and violent actions attributed to these groups, which included the kidnapping of police officers, murders, explosive devices, burning vehicles, riots in prisons with 200 hostages (already released) and the takeover of a television channel by part thirteen armed hooded men, now detained.

President Noboa has identified organized crime gangs as terrorist groups and belligerent non-state actors to be neutralized by the Armed Forces, which are now in charge of the country’s security.

This crisis began with the escape from prison of Adolfo Macías ‘Fito’, criminal gang leader ‘Los Choneros’, before he was to be transferred and isolated in a maximum security prison.