Credit: EFE/Jonathan Miranda

Ecuador’s President Daniel Noboa issued a decree permitting the deployment of foreign military personnel to help combat organized crime, granting them immunity under international agreements and reaffirming that the country is facing an “internal armed conflict” with criminal groups.

The measure was announced by Noboa in a video released by the Presidency, in which he said troops from allied countries would be able to work alongside Ecuadorian security forces in the provinces most affected by violence, News.Az reports, citing UPI.

"Today I signed a decree that strengthens the fight against narco-terrorism in Ecuador. As a result of this decision, military personnel from allied countries will be able to deploy to the provinces hardest hit by violence and work alongside our security bloc," the president said.

"This measure is the result of months of work, especially during our most recent meeting at the Pentagon. From today on, narco-terrorists will face a stronger, better-prepared Ecuador that is no longer fighting alone," he added.

The announcement came after Noboa traveled to Washington this week to meet with U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, with whom he discussed security cooperation.

"You have been an exemplary partner for us in the fight against these networks that threaten your homeland, threaten ours and threaten the security of our shared hemisphere," Hegseth told the Ecuadorian president, according to a transcript released by the Pentagon.

Executive Decree 424 states that Ecuador is facing an internal armed conflict caused by criminal organizations whose activities pose a threat to national sovereignty, state security, public order and the protection of the population.

The declaration revisits a measure adopted by Noboa in January 2024, when he recognized the existence of an internal armed conflict and designated 22 organized crime groups as terrorist organizations and non-state belligerent actors, according to Executive Decree 111 and reports by Ecuadorian newspaper El Universo.

News.Az 

By Ulviyya Salmanli