What Will Come of a New Ecuador-U.S. Security Agreement?

Question: The U.S. and Ecuadorean governments on July 31 signed an agreement to strengthen security cooperation against transnational criminal groups. The deal, which was finalized during a visit to Ecuador by U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, makes it easier for the two countries to exchange information about criminals as well as on risk assessments related to travelers and cargo. How will such information sharing work in practice, and how will it affect law enforcement in Ecuador? To what extent will the agreement help to make Ecuador safer? What are the most important ways the two countries should cooperate in order to fight crime and violence?

Answer: Mike Fitzpatrick, senior advisor to Dinámica Americas and former U.S. ambassador to Ecuador (2019-2024): “Well-financed criminal groups routinely operate with impunity across international borders, flouting sovereignty while committing crimes in one jurisdiction before skipping to another to avoid prosecution. Domestic and foreign gangs increasingly have bent Ecuador’s public and private institutions to their will, making the previously peaceful country one of the most violent on the planet. Nations committed to the rule of law must improve their own multinational coordination and information-sharing efforts to reverse these trends. The assignment of an Ecuadorean police liaison to U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s National Targeting Center is a great step forward, designed to improve both the speed and quality of information shared among cooperating law enforcement agencies. In the best of cases…”

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