Ecuador launches joint anti-drug operations with US

Noboa, a close ally of US President Donald Trump, said the United States was among "regional allies" taking part in a "new phase" of Ecuador's war on the drug cartels which use its ports to smuggle cocaine to international markets. "In March, we will conduct joint operations with our regional allies, including the United States," he wrote on X. On Monday, Noboa held talks in Quito with US Southern Command chief Francis Donovan and Mark Schafer, head of US Special Operations in Central and South America and the Caribbean.