In January, Ecuador’s National Police stepped up its fight against arms and explosives trafficking, capturing 19 criminals involved in the transport, stockpiling, and distribution of arms and ammunition. Police carried out Operation Armed Border (Operación Frontera Armada) in the provinces of Carchi, Imbabura, Pichincha, Cañar, Azuay, El Oro, and Loja. [ … ]
Transnational Threats
US ‘Committed’ to Assist Latin American East Pacific Countries Against Illegal Fishing
The United States is “committed to the task” of collaborating with the governments and armed forces of Colombia, Ecuador, Costa Rica, and Panama to protect the Eastern Tropical Pacific Marine Conservation Corridor (CMAR) and stop illegal fishing, drug and human trafficking, U.S. Secretary of the Navy Carlos del Toro said [ … ]
China, 5G, and the Security Threat in Latin America
The People’s Republic of China (PRC) is keeping up with its infiltration strategy in Latin America on various front, including pushing for its 5G wireless technology to attempt to influence all sectors of society, Argentine news site Infobae reported. “It’s a dual tool that serves to facilitate communications, but that [ … ]
Brazilian Military Leads Humanitarian Operation for Yanomami People Devastated by Illegal Mining
Since January 22, 2023, the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) and the Brazilian Army (EB) have been taking part in the Brazilian government efforts to bring humanitarian aid to the indigenous Yanomami people in the Surucucu region of Roraima state. The Yanomami people are facing a humanitarian crisis with disease, violence, [ … ]
Colombian Navy’s Demining Work Brings Hope
The Colombian Navy closed 2022 with good news for the inhabitants of the department of Sucre on the Caribbean coast, declaring it free of antipersonnel mines. The efforts of the Humanitarian Demining Company, which cleared nearly 13,000 square meters of land, allowed the inhabitants to return to the fields to [ … ]
Colombia and Ecuador Fight Narcotrafficking on Common Border
Colombia and Ecuador’s top military leaders pledged in late December 2022 to strengthen operations in the fight against narcotrafficking and organized crime along their common border, some 586 kilometers across coastal, Andean, and Amazon regions. Army General Helder Fernán Giraldo Bonilla, commander of the Colombian Military Forces, and Army Major [ … ]
Panama Creates IUU Fishing Protection Center
In early January, Panama’s President Laurentino Cortizo announced the creation of an interinstitutional center, which objective will be to rigorously combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing. The center will contribute to the development of measures against IUU fishing and water pollution for the conservation and protection of the marine [ … ]
Cocaine Trade from Latin America to Africa on the Rise
Countries in Eastern and Southern Africa are receiving much larger illegal shipments of South American drugs than previously thought as global cocaine markets expand, InSight Crime, an organization that studies organized crime in Latin America and the Caribbean, indicated in an early January report. "Cocaine trafficking from Latin America through [ … ]
‘Ndrangheta, Main European Ally of Latin American Narcotraffickers
The reach of Italy’s ‘Ndrangheta mafia extends throughout Central and South America, and the criminal organization, among the most powerful in the world, has become one of the main European allies of Latin American narcotraffickers, InSight Crime, an organization dedicated to the study of organized crime in Latin America and [ … ]
US Invests $13.7 Million in Costa Rica to Combat Narcotrafficking
On February 7, the United States pledged to give Costa Rica $13.7 million worth of security equipment to “improve” the Central American country’s ability to combat narcotrafficking, said U.S. Army General Laura J. Richardson, commander of U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM). “I am pleased to announce [...] initiatives that will enhance [ … ]
Panama Strengthens Fight Against International Narcotrafficking
Panama closed 2022 accomplishing a major feat in the fight against narcotrafficking with the seizure of 128.6 tons of drugs in different operations throughout the year, Panamanian President Laurentino Cortizo told the National Assembly in January. “Due to its geographic location Panama is easily connected to all ports in Europe, [ … ]
US Navy Launches Groundbreaking Initiative in Chile
In late December 2022, the U.S. Embassy in Chile, the U.S. Navy’s Office of Naval Research (ONR), and its international arm ONR Global launched a project to encourage students, particularly girls and gender non-conforming students, to develop skills in Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, and the Arts (STEAM). The initiative will [ … ]