Argentina has designated three criminal organisations operating in Ecuador as "terrorist groups," Ecuador’s Presidency announced on Thursday following a meeting in Quito between President Daniel Noboa and his Argentine counterpart, Javier Milei.
During a meeting at the Carondelet Palace, the seat of Ecuador’s government, Noboa and Milei signed agreements covering security, trade and extradition, said a readout.
Noboa "thanked the Argentine Government for designating the Ecuadorian criminal organisations Los Lobos, Los Choneros and Chone Killers as terrorist groups, in support of Ecuador’s fight against transnational organised crime," the Ecuadorean Presidency said in a statement, without providing further details.
The three groups have already been designated "foreign terrorist organisations’ by the United States. Los Choneros and Los Lobos received the designation in September 2025, while Chone Killers was designated last month. The designation means their leaders and anyone associated with them may face sanctions and criminal charges in the United States.
Noboa, a close ally of US President Donald Trump, as is Milei, has imposed curfews and deployed the military in several provinces as part of a Washington-backed offensive aimed at eliminating criminal gang activity.
Ecuador is experiencing unprecedented levels of violence amid a war between rival organisations fighting for control of drug-trafficking routes. The groups are also involved in illegal mining, kidnapping and extortion. The country recorded 51 killings per 100,000 inhabitants in 2025, equivalent to one every hour, according to researchers Insight Crime.
Noboa and Milei also reviewed the implementation and progress of a previous agreement on the fight against organised crime, as well as an extradition treaty, according to the official statement.
Ecuador’s Ambassador to Argentina Diana Salazar said in an interview this week that the countries had an agreement dating from 1933 that needed to be updated.
The presidents "highlighted the marked convergence of their governments on security and defence" in the fight against drug-trafficking, money-laundering and corruption, the Ecuadorean Presidency added.
The other agreements signed relate to the implementation of tariff preferences for vehicle trade, air transport relations and scientific cooperation on the peaceful uses of nuclear energy.
– TIMES/AFP
Comments