Rubio Vows Tough Action Against Foreign Crime Groups, Announces Terrorist Designation for Ecuadorian Gangs
Quito, Sept 2025 : US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has warned that Washington is prepared to “blow up” foreign criminal groups if necessary, in what he described as an expanded war on drug-trafficking networks threatening the United States.
Speaking during a visit to Ecuador, Rubio said the US would work with partner governments to dismantle powerful cartels operating in Latin America. “Now they’re going to help us find these people and blow them up, if that’s what it takes,” he told reporters.
Rubio confirmed that Washington will designate two of Ecuador’s most notorious gangs, Los Lobos and Los Choneros, as foreign terrorist organizations, granting the US greater authority to target their operations. The move aligns with Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa’s call for international recognition of the groups as terrorist entities.
The announcement comes days after US forces carried out a strike on a vessel in the Caribbean Sea, which the White House said killed 11 suspected drug traffickers linked to Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua gang. Human rights experts have questioned the legality of the strike under international law.
Tensions escalated further on Thursday when the Pentagon accused two Venezuelan military aircraft of flying dangerously close to a US vessel in what it called a “highly provocative” attempt to disrupt counter-narcotics operations. Caracas has yet to respond.
In addition to the terror designation, Rubio announced $13.5 million in new US security aid and $6 million in drone technology to assist Ecuador in tackling drug trafficking. He praised Noboa’s efforts, calling Ecuador’s battle against cartels a “war that requires international support.”
Violence in Ecuador has surged in recent years as rival gangs fight for control over cocaine smuggling routes from Colombia and Peru. Government figures suggest that about 70% of the world’s cocaine now passes through Ecuador, making it a strategic hub for cartels supplying the US, Europe, and Asia.
The US designations will allow Washington to freeze assets, restrict travel, and share intelligence with Ecuador without limitations, enabling “potentially lethal” operations. However, immigration law experts warned the policy could complicate asylum claims by Ecuadorians fleeing cartel violence. While victims could be recognized as targets of terrorism, those forced to pay extortion fees may risk being penalized for “materially supporting” terrorist groups.
President Noboa has welcomed stronger US involvement and is pushing to amend Ecuador’s constitution to allow foreign military bases to return, after the last US base was closed in 2009. “We are at war with these gangs,” Noboa said earlier this year, stressing he would be “glad” to see Washington classify them as terrorists.
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