Guatemala’s recent efforts have propelled it at the forefront of the fight against international narcotrafficking in Central America and have led the nation’s security forces to deal a historic blow to criminal organizations in 2024.
Guatemala’s success, the country’s official gazette Diario de Centro América reported in early January, reflects its forces’ commitment and effective strategies against organized crime. “The blows to organized crime increased significantly in 2024, compared to 2023,” the gazette reported.
“International narcotrafficking uses Guatemala’s territorial waters for its illegal activities, due to its proximity to the Mexican coast,” Guatemalan Army Major Ann Marie Argueta, a spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense, told Diálogo. “This helps [criminals] diminish their value chain to smuggle illicit goods from South America to the destination country.”
Unprecedented results
In 2024, Guatemalan authorities made a record seizures of drugs totaling 18.2 tons of cocaine, Diario de Centro América reported.
“We also destroyed seven illegal airstrips and two clandestine laboratories,” Maj. Argueta added. “The National Civil Police [PNC] and the National Navy made the largest seizures on the Pacific and Atlantic coasts during operations Calamar I and II.”
In March 2024, during Operation Calamar I, the PNC together with the Army seized three boats with 3,927 kilograms of cocaine in one week, the PNC reported.
On November 19, during Calamar II, the Guatemalan Coast Guard seized a record amount of cocaine in the country, after drug traffickers abandoned their vessel on the Caribbean coast following a chase. “The vessel was carrying 157 bags with a total of 3,905 packages,” Guatemalan newspaper Prensa Libre reported. “The tally of what was seized resulted in 4.4 tons of cocaine,” the Interior Ministry said.
“The Guatemalan Army carries out land, maritime, surveillance, and aerial interdiction operations, establishing control and sovereignty in the national territory, and obtaining excellent results,” Maj. Argueta said. “These operations had a successful result, cutting off transnational criminal organizations’ supply chains within the national territory.”
International narcotrafficking organizations no longer use Central American countries as transit zones but are also experimenting with coca crops. “Small-scale coca growing has expanded from traditional Andean production countries to Venezuela, Guatemala, and Honduras, as technology has enabled the crop to thrive outside its Andean birthplace,” InSight Crime, an organization that studies organized crime in Latin America, indicated in a July 2024 report.
Neighbors and partners
“In this fight against drug trafficking, it is worth highlighting the support of partner countries that are also committed to the rule of law, peace, and democracy, and that allocate resources to strengthen security capabilities, donations, and joint operations,” Guatemalan news site Canal Antigua reported. “The Calamar operations are possible thanks to intelligence exchange between the United States, Colombia, Guatemala, and Mexico.”
For Maj. Argueta, international cooperation is key to strengthen countries’ capabilities to combat drug trafficking. “Guatemala contributes to the effectiveness of the operations, matching the commitment of partner countries to fight drug trafficking in the region,” Maj. Argueta added.
In February 2024, for example, Guatemalan and Mexican soldiers, police, and customs agents carried out Operation Ring of Fire along the countries’ border, Mexican news site Milenio reported. The objective was “to counter the actions of transnational organized crime, such as smuggling and arms and human trafficking,” then Guatemalan Army Spokesperson Colonel Rubén Téllez told the press.
More than 5,000 Guatemalan soldiers, 500 agents of the National Civil Police (PNC), and more than 700 service members of the Mexican Army took part in the operation, patrolling their respective territories to strengthen security on both sides of the border.
In 2024, the United States also played a crucial role in supporting Guatemala in its fight against narcotrafficking, through important donations and agreements.
“One of the great challenges of our government is to recover the land, air and maritime spaces that […] have been exploited by organized crime for its operations,” said Guatemalan President Bernardo Arévalo, reported Agencia Guatemalteca de Noticias (AGN). Arévalo also highlighted the importance of cooperation with the United States, noting that “it is our main partner and ally in the joint fight against transnational organized crime.”
Unconditional support
In February 2024, U.S. Ambassador to Guatemala Tobin Bradley delivered 19 all-terrain vehicles to the PNC to combat drug and human trafficking and to strengthen criminal investigation capabilities.
In October, the U.S. government delivered equipment worth $13 million to Guatemala. On October 4, the United States donated the offshore patrol vessel Hunahpú GC-871, AGN reported. The vessel, equipped with state-of-the-art technology, was incorporated into the Pacific Naval Command’s fleet to reinforce territorial waters surveillance.
On October 24, U.S. Army General (Ret.) Laura Richardson, then commander of U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), delivered radio communication equipment, armored vests and helmets, as well as artillery vehicles and spare parts for aircraft and vessels, among other materials, all for the Guatemalan Army.
In addition, between March and October 2024, the United States pledged to invest $100 million to Guatemala se Transforma, an initiative of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs and the Guatemalan government to bolster security. “Together, we are forging strong partnerships to end extortion, dismantle smuggling and trafficking networks, and support the PNC in its recruitment, training, and performance for the benefit of the people,” Bradley said then.
“Drug trafficking represents a serious threat to the security and well-being of communities. The easy access to illicit substances and circulation of large amounts of money outside the financial system cause inflation, hinder access to basic goods, and generate economic instability,” Maj. Argueta concluded. “With the fight against narcotrafficking and organized crime, we seek to protect people’s health, ensure public safety, and promote the economic development of communities affected by these scourges.”
