Since January 2020, when the world went on alert about the coronavirus, Brazilian service members have been intensifying the fight against the pandemic. The same has happened in the majority of Latin American countries that rely on the armed forces to strengthen measures against the spread of the virus. Assignments [ … ]
Venezuela Involved In Cocaine Production
Venezuela is no longer just a transit country for drugs, as Venezuelans are involved in the first phases of cocaine production, Venezuelan experts and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) said. The International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), a body of the United Nations (U.N.), said in its 2019 report, published February 27, 2020, [ … ]
COVID-19 Fuels Economic Depression In Nicaragua
Nicaragua’s economy contracted 10 percent in the last two years, and is expected to continue its decline due to the endless socio-political crisis. Furthermore, the coronavirus (COVID-19) impact could hasten the economy’s collapse, says nongovernmental organization Nicaraguan Foundation for Economic and Social Development (FUNIDES, in Spanish) in its report Economic [ … ]
Colombia Deploys Service Members to Contain COVID-19 Spread
Colombia is fighting to contain the coronavirus spread with a robust package of measures authorities took after declaring a state of national emergency focused on a lockdown, which started at 12 a.m. on March 23. The mandatory order will last until at least April 13. The country reported its first [ … ]
Peruvian Armed Forces Strengthen Cyberspace Defense
Peruvian Minister of Defense Walter Martos Ruíz inaugurated the headquarters of the Armed Forces Joint Command’s Cyber Defense Operational Command (COCID, in Spanish) in Lima, in late January 2020. The command’s mission is to plan and carry out cyberspace operations to counter attacks against national security. “The unit is equipped [ … ]
US Announces New Counterdrug Operation In Latin America and the Caribbean
U.S. President Donald Trump, flanked by top officials including Secretary of Defense Mark Esper and U.S. Army General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, announced a massive new “counter-narcotics operation” in the Latin America and Caribbean region. “As nations around the world focus on the COVID-19 pandemic, [ … ]
Jamaica Defence Force Aims to Reduce Violence in the Country
The Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) has embarked on a multifaceted approach to change the culture of violence in the country. The plan includes providing more support for the police, restructuring the force, and increasing its members. The driving force behind this effort is Lieutenant General Rocky Ricardo Meade. The chief [ … ]
Panamanian Security Forces Join the Fight Against COVID-19
About 5,000 service members of the Panamanian National Border Service (SENAFRONT, in Spanish) and National Air and Naval Service (SENAN, in Spanish) have joined the national action plan to confront the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic and enforce executive orders related to the state of emergency declaration. Both forces have assigned human [ … ]
Armed Forces of Uruguay Support the Population as Coronavirus Advances
Members and resources of the Armed Forces of Uruguay deployed to support the community in the face of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic with the distribution of basic and medical supplies and border patrols, among other essential measures. On March 13, Uruguayan President Luis Lacalle Pou declared a health emergency as [ … ]
Venezuelan Military Leads Narcotrafficking Cartel, UN Acknowledges
The International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), a United Nations (U.N.) body, confirmed in its latest annual report the existence of the so-called Cartel of the Suns, a criminal narcotrafficking network led by Venezuela’s top military officials with the regime’s support. It is the first time that the INCB has presented [ … ]
Vita Exercise in Colombia
Chilean Armed Forces Take Action to Fight Coronavirus
Chilean President Sebastián Piñera declared a state of emergency for 90 days beginning March 19, to address the COVID-19 crisis. The borders are closed to foreign visitors in an attempt to avoid the entry of people who might be infected, and a curfew was established from 10 p.m. to 5 [ … ]