FBI opens first Ecuador office in fight against drug trafficking

March 11, 2026 5:33 PM EDT

The logo of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) displayed on the building in Washington, D.C., U.S., November 28, 2025. REUTERS/Nathan Howard

QUITO, March 11 (Reuters) - ‌The ​United ​States has opened its first Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) office ‌in Ecuador, the U.S. Embassy in ⁠Quito said on Wednesday.

The office will aim to ‌work with Ecuadorean ‌officials to fight the trafficking of drugs and weapons, along with money laundering ​and the financing of terrorism, the embassy said in a social ⁠media post.

Ecuador's Interior Minister John Reimber told reporters that ​collaboration with the FBI office would start immediately, after prior joint ​efforts with the U.S.

"What ‌has changed is that we have FBI agents permanently in ⁠Ecuador working with a national police unit that has been set up so ⁠that they can work together," he said.

Ecuadorean President ​Daniel Noboa has made a military crackdown on organized crime a cornerstone of his administration. ‌Last week his government staged a joint operation with U.S. ‌officials to target drug trafficking operations ⁠in the South ‌American country.

(Reporting ​by Alexandra Valencia, Writing by Daina Beth Solomon; Editing by Brendan ‌O'Boyle)



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