Ecuador's president seeks constitutional reform to allow foreign military bases in country

By Laura Gamba

BOGOTA, Colombia (AA) - Ecuador's President Daniel Noboa will seek changes to the country's constitution to allow foreign military bases to be established in the country, he announced Monday.

"Today we will present a partial constitutional reform to the national assembly which substantially modifies article 5 of the constitution that prohibits the establishment of foreign military bases and facilities that have military purposes. In a transnational conflict we need a national and international response," Noboa said in a video he posted on X that was recorded in the same facilities where the Manta Base operated.

The Constitution of Ecuador explicitly prohibits the installation of foreign military bases in its territory. The measure was imposed during the administration of President Rafael Correa, which culminated with the departure in 2009 of a base that the United States occupied in Manta, Manabí for a decade.

Although Correa’s government received criticism, saying that this led to an increase in drug trafficking and violence in the country, his government claimed at the time that the US withdrawal had brought greater security to the country. The ban was intended to reject the control and influence of foreign powers in defense matters.

“They said this way, we would recover Ecuador's sovereignty, but what they did was hand it over to drug trafficking. Ecuador is facing a battle against transnational crime," the president said.

For the past five years, Ecuador has been battling with increasing violence related to transnational organized crime, which has led to a security crisis. President Noboa came to power in 2023 with proposals to crack down on gangs behind the wave of violence.