Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. would consider setting up a military base in Ecuador, a country that currently has a tense relationship with Venezuela, if invited by the South American country.
Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa said during a meeting with Rubio that he supports the base but it needs to be approved in a referendum. Reuters noted that the U.S. had a base in the coastal city of Manta, but left in 2009 following orders from then-president Rafael Correa.
Such a move could further strain relationships between the countries, whose leaders stand in opposing political camps. Noboa in fact said on Friday that Venezuela's authoritarian President Nicolas Maduro is a cartel leader and his government will do "everything to end narco terrorism."
Speaking to Univision, Noboa was asked why he was one of the first heads of state in Latin America to follow the Trump administration and declare the Cartel de los Soles as a terrorist organization.
"That is what I think they are. We've seen them work with narco terrorist organizations in Ecuador and the region. We have to call them what they are. They also deal weapons and traffic people, conduct illegal mining."
Specifically consulted about Maduro, Noboa said that "intelligence reports conclude that he is the head of the Cartel de los Soles." "We'll do everything to end narco terrorism," he added.
Ecuador is seeking close relationships with the U.S., also agreeing to receive hundreds of U.S. deportees from third countries who have refugee status as long as they have not committed crimes and have no health issues.
"It will be a limited program that applies only to refugees of certain nationalities who have no criminal background and who meet certain conditions such as being in good health," Gabriela Sommerfeld said before Rubio's arrival to the country. Overall, the country could receive 300 migrants a year, according to AFP. A senior State Department official said the two countries reached a safe third country agreement, although the implementation is being worked on.
Several countries in the region have already accepted receiving migrants from the U.S. since the beginning of the Trump administration. In August it struck a deal with Honduras to send deportees from third countries. Concretely, it accepted to receive a few hundred deportees over a two-year period, but it opened the door to taking in more.
The deals follow the signing of a "safe third country" asylum agreement with Paraguay in August and are part of the administration's broader push to remove deportees as quickly as possible.
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