Ecuador defends US sinking of vessels as joint anti-drug operation

Ecuador has defended a US operation this week that sank three vessels accused of sustaining drug-trafficking operations in the Eastern Pacific.

Key points

• Ecuadorian Interior Minister John Reimberg informed broadcaster Teleamazonas the vessels were refueling points for speedboats that move drugs north towards Mexico and the United States.
• Ecuador's administration stated on Friday the interception and sinking of the Ecuadorian vessels were part of joint investigations ⁠with Washington targeting drug-smuggling activities linked to criminal gangs.
• SOUTHCOM confirmed a previous attack on a "low-profile" vessel that killed two individuals on August 23.
• Relatives of some crew members accused the US military of acting without evidence and remarked the men on the boats were fishermen.
• Trump has asserted the US is in a "non-international armed conflict" with drug-trafficking organisations in an unreleased memo obtained by US media.

Ecuadorian Interior Minister John Reimberg informed broadcaster Teleamazonas the vessels were refueling points for speedboats that move drugs north towards Mexico and the United States. "This is ⁠work carried out through international cooperation, " Reimberg remarked.

For context, the US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) reiterated Reimberg's claim, saying it "successfully interdicted a vessel operating as a floating refueling station in support of illicit at-sea drug trafficking operations", linked to the Los Choneros gang.

"Individuals removed from the vessel will be safely transferred to Ecuadorian authorities. Once cleared, U.S. Forces sank the vessel, " SOUTHCOM posted on X on Thursday.

In practice, a video accompanying SOUTHCOM's post indicated US forces approaching and boarding a vessel before it was blown up at sea. The time and location of the video have not been independently verified.

Relatives of some crew members accused the US military of acting without evidence and remarked the men on the boats were fishermen. The wife of one crew member informed the Reuters news agency in a phone interview that the men had been fishing when US forces boarded and that no drugs were identified. Her account has not been independently verified.

According to The Ecuadorian navy, it received 28 crew members from that vessel and another boat that was sunk on Wednesday and that they arrived in Manta, the country's main fishing port, on board a local coastguard vessel.

On Friday, a group of individuals waited for news of their relatives who, they stated, were traveling on the boats targeted previously two days, the AFP news agency documented.

For context, the incidents are the latest in the Trump administration's campaign against maritime drug trafficking that has drawn concern in Latin America over the employ of air attacks and lethal force on international waters.

SOUTHCOM confirmed a previous attack on a "low-profile" vessel that killed two individuals on August 23. Another US strike killed four individuals two days afterwards. No victims were identified in either attack.

For now, ecuador defends US sinking of vessels as joint anti remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.