According to the World Customs Organization’s (WCO) 2025 report, criminal networks are increasingly infiltrating maritime logistics chains. The report details how corrupt port and logistics workers facilitate the massive movement of cocaine through Latin American ports, directly impacting international trade and regional security.
Based on more than 2,600 global seizures made between 2023 and 2024, the report reveals that “internal conspirators” were involved in 68 percent of cases. These employees, with privileged access to containers and security systems, replicate seals and manipulate cargo to contaminate shipments with drugs.
“Criminal groups manage to corrupt or infiltrate personnel and, when controls at certain ports increase, they redirect their routes to others with less detection capacity,” Yadira Gálvez, a security specialist at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, told Diálogo.
According to the WCO, cartels and transnational networks exploit vulnerabilities at docks and customs to introduce drugs, weapons, and illicit merchandise, constantly diversifying their concealment methods to evade interdiction. As such, regional ports become strategic nodes in global smuggling routes.
The report describes the global cocaine trade as a consolidated industry with a supply chain that precisely controls every link, from production and transportation to logistics, and sales.
Evolution of drug trafficking and new routes
Drug trafficking in Latin America has evolved from the early Andean routes to the United States. Global demand for drugs remains at historic levels, with cocaine gaining ground in Europe, while fentanyl is surging in the United States, nongovernmental organization International Crisis Group (ICG) indicates.
While Colombia and Mexico remain epicenters, one of the most dynamic routes now crosses the Pacific, with countries like Costa Rica and Ecuador serving as key nodes to North America and Europe. Cocaine flows are constantly adapting to controls and pressure from authorities, shifting departure and transit points, ICG noted.
Nine out of 10 cocaine shipments originate in South America and seven out of 10 travel by sea. In 2024 alone, European authorities seized more than 200 tons of the narcotic in the ports of Rotterdam, Antwerp, and Hamburg, with most originating in the region.
The WCO identifies concealment in structures and the “blind hook” method as the most common tactics. The blind hook involves introducing drugs into a legitimate cargo and then discreetly extracting them at any point in the supply chain — even during land transport or on board ships — with the complicity of the crews. Concealment in structures is even harder to detect, as drugs are hidden in the walls, ceilings, or floors of containers and can be removed from refrigerated panels or tanks.
“What makes these methods so effective in ports is the combination of porosity, corruption, and infiltration,” Gálvez said. “Criminal networks infiltrate different nodes of the logistics chain, such as customs, transport, and port terminals, to manipulate cargo and replicate security seals.”
Gálvez emphasizes that nations must strengthen detection and interdiction through advanced technology and stricter protocols. “More advanced controls are needed; ports where trafficking is diverted must be identified, and the supervision of other illicit activities, such as chemical precursors or counterfeit goods, must be reinforced.”
Strategic export hubs
Trafficking has shifted from the traditional ports of Colombia and Peru to new hubs in Brazil, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Panama, and the Dominican Republic. According to InSight Crime, Brazil, has established itself as a bridge to Europe, thanks to its connection to Andean production areas and its extensive Atlantic coastline.
The WCO reports that Ecuador accounted for 30 percent (385 tons) of cocaine seized in shipping containers between 2023 and 2024. The country’s banana industry and the port of Guayaquil are the primary transit channels, and criminal networks have also hidden drugs in tuna shipments.
The report’s findings are underscored by real-world operations in the region. For instance, in March 2025, Ecuadorian police and international agencies announced Operations Gran Fénix 13 and 14, which resulted in 44 arrests in Ecuador and 15 in Germany. The criminal organization forged seals and locks to move containers from Guayaquil and Puerto Bolívar to Europe.
Containers have become the primary means of trafficking cocaine to Europe. Of the 750 million that move each year, less than 2 percent are inspected, allowing criminal networks to minimize the risk of seizure and maximize profits, Insight Crime stated.
Regional coordination and interdiction efforts
Naval and coast guard forces in the Pacific, Caribbean, and Atlantic, face increasing attempts to move drugs to North America, Europe, Africa, and Australia, the WCO reports. “It is very difficult to detect containers because of the volume and quantity of cargo circulating in all ports,” Gálvez said.
These calls for greater coordination are answered by multinational efforts led by nations of the region. In July 2025, for instance, Colombia led the 15th edition of Operation Orion, with the participation of 61 countries. According to the Colombian government, 327 tons of cocaine and 210 tons of marijuana were seized. The United States, a key partner, supported the operation with naval and air assets, technical assistance, and intelligence.
Another example of regional leadership is the Regional Security System (RSS), an international agreement for the defense and security of the Eastern Caribbean. The RSS coordinates joint land and maritime operations among its member nations — Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines — to counter transnational threats.
Underscoring the United States’ commitment to security in the region and interdiction, the U.S. Coast Guard, in collaboration with partner nations, seized some 320 tons of cocaine and 48 tons of marijuana in the Eastern Pacific and the Caribbean from 2023 to March 2025, according to the WCO report. This agency, along with the UNODC, also promotes the Container Control Program to curb illicit trafficking and strengthen security in the supply chain.
A key component of this regional approach is the Joint Interagency Task Force South (JIATF-South), a component of U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) that conducts interagency counter-drug operations in the Eastern Pacific and Caribbean. It does so with the support of partner nations with liaisons embedded from over 20 countries to facilitate information exchanges and coordinated action.
“The key is to strengthen all agencies responsible for combating illicit trafficking, improve information sharing, and prevent the infiltration of internal operators into the logistics chain,” Gálvez said.
According to Gálvez, for better effectiveness, the various multinational and interagency groups responsible for combating maritime drug trafficking in the region require technology, training, and resources that the United States could provide. She suggests forming a coalition with Latin American allies to reinforce and expand existing actions, leveraging available infrastructure and capabilities across the region.
“Latin American governments must recognize that ports are critical infrastructures that combine economic security and the fight against illicit trafficking,” Gálvez concludes. “It is necessary to improve capabilities, from physical protection to technological detection, and to use route analysis to anticipate the movements of criminal organizations, shielding critical routes in a more sustainable manner.”
