General José María Córdova Military Cadet Academy (ESMIC) Bogotá, Colombia

Senior cadets at the school are promoted to the rank of private with a Saber Presentation Ceremony. (Photo: ESMIC)

The training of future officers of the Colombian Army takes four years. Students join the school with the rank of cadet. (Photo: ESMIC)

In January 2009, women entered the ESMIC officer training course for the first time. The first class of female second lieutenants graduated in December 2012. (Photo: ESMIC)

ESMIC currently has 1,912 students, 227 teachers, and 23,010 alumni. (Photo: ESMIC)

On April 28-29, 2022 ESMIC hosted the III International Seminar on Human Rights and Operational Law, organized by U.S. Southern Command together with the Colombian Military Forces. (Photo: ESMIC)

Special Report

Ecuador at the Crossroads of Transnational Crime: Violence, Criminal Reconfiguration, and Regional Challenges – PART II

For decades, Ecuador was perceived as an exception in a region plagued by drug trafficking, armed violence, and criminal capture of the state. While neighboring countries faced open wars between cartels and state forces, Ecuador seemed to remain on the sidelines of these dynamics. That image began to slowly crack and finally collapsed in January 2024, when President Daniel Noboa declared an internal armed conflict [ … ]

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