SOUTHCOM Commander Visits Ecuador, Brings Support in Fight Against Organized Crime

U.S. Army General Laura J. Richardson, commander of U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), and U.S. Presidential Advisor for the Americas Christopher Dodd, met with Ecuador’s President Daniel Noboa as part of the U.S. commitment to the security of the South American country and their enduring bonds of friendship, in Quito, January 22, 2024. (Photo: Presidency of Ecuador/X)

The delegation, led by Special Presidential Advisor to the Americas Christopher Dodd and U.S. Army General Laura J. Richardson, SOUTHCOM commander, met with Ecuador’s President Daniel Noboa in Quito’s Carondelet Palace to deepen bilateral relations and discuss security, counter drug cooperation, migration, and economic development support, January 22, 2024. (Photo: Presidency of Ecuador/X)

As part of the week-long visit, the U.S. delegation met with Ecuador’s Attorney General Diana Salazar Méndez and other senior judicial members to address ways to work together to combat transnational criminal organizations, in Quito, January 23, 2024. (Photo: U.S. Embassy in Ecuador/X)

U.S. Army General Laura J. Richardson, SOUTHCOM commander, shakes hands with Ecuador’s Minister of Defense Gian Carlo Loffredo, during a visit that included high ranking officers of the Ecuadorian Armed Forces, in Quito, January 24, 2024. (Photo: Ministry of Ecuador/X)

As part of its commitment to security in Ecuador and their longstanding bonds of cooperation, the U.S. government donated vehicles and other security equipment to reinforce the work of law enforcement, military, and disaster preparedness institutions of Ecuador, in Guayaquil, January 25, 2023. (Photo: U.S. Embassy in Ecuador/X)

U.S. Army General Laura J. Richardson, SOUTHCOM commander, and U.S. Ambassador to Ecuador Mike Fitzpatrick, as well as high ranking officials of the Ecuadorian Armed Forces, took part in the handover ceremony in which the United States donated vehicles as well as security equipment to the Ecuadorian National Police and Armed Forces, in Guayaquil, January 25, 2024. (Photo: U.S. Embassy in Ecuador/X)