US Designates Ecuadorian Criminal Group as 'Terrorist Organization,' Rubio's Three-Nation Trip Advances 'Shield of the Americas' Military Framework

US Secretary of State Rubio announced on the 9th in Quito, the capital of Ecuador, that the Ecuadorian criminal group Los Tiguerones has been officially designated as a 'terrorist organization,' and stated that he will seek $45 million in additional funding from Congress to 'dismantle these terrorist organizations.' According to The Guardian, Rubio made the remarks during a meeting with Ecuadorian President Noboa, and this is the second stop of his three-nation Latin American trip this week.

Los Tiguerones had previously, in 2024, stormed into the TC Televisión studio armed, launching an attack during a live broadcast of the news program 'El Noticiero.' Footage showed the attackers carrying pistols, shotguns, machine guns, grenades, and bundles of explosives. This incident directly prompted Noboa to declare a state of 'internal armed conflict' and reinforced his governing approach of confronting drug-related violence with tough measures. Rubio alleged that the group is linked to drug trafficking and attacks on civilians, law enforcement, and journalists. He was quoted as saying: 'We are not talking about ordinary mafia or ordinary criminals, we are talking about terrorists, who in many cases possess weapons and equipment comparable to the regular armies of certain countries.'

Rubio also announced that Ecuadorian elite forces and the US military are 'operating jointly at a daily level in an unprecedented manner to dismantle these terrorist organizations.' He did not disclose details regarding the scale of the joint operations, rules of engagement, or legal authorization, and the implementation plan for the proposed $45 million in funding was similarly vague.

More pointed were Rubio's characterizations of Ecuador's positioning—he described Ecuador as the 'most aggressive' partner in the Trump administration's military operations targeting so-called drug traffickers. The Guardian noted that these remarks are directly linked to the Trump administration's ongoing maritime strike operations: the related operations have caused at least 227 deaths, with the US side claiming the deceased were all drug traffickers, but no evidence has ever been publicly provided. This approach, which legitimizes state violence without independent verification, has raised widespread questions under international law.

The deeper context is the 'Shield of the Americas' alliance pushed by the Trump administration. The Guardian reported that the framework centers on drug trafficking and illegal immigration as core agenda items, aimed at comprehensively strengthening security cooperation with right-wing allies in the Latin American region. The three-nation layout of Rubio's trip—Ecuador, Colombia, Peru—precisely corresponds to the most notable political rightward shifts in the region in recent years.

In Colombia, Rubio met with newly inaugurated President de la Espriella, who took office in June. The Guardian cited Rubio as saying the two sides will 'correct the mistakes of the past four years,' and he publicly characterized the governance of left-wing former President Petro as 'unnatural.' Colombia's accession to the 'Shield of the Americas' was only realized after a change of regime, and this timing in itself exposes the political selectivity of the alliance: partners are drawn along ideological lines rather than measured by governance performance or human rights records. The two sides also signed memorandums of understanding in the critical minerals and nuclear energy sectors during the meeting.

Rubio is expected to travel next to Peru to meet Keiko Fujimori, who in July defeated a left-wing candidate by a narrow margin of only about 50,000 votes. According to The Guardian, Keiko Fujimori has pledged to combat crime with an 'iron fist' and has made clear her intention to adopt some of the controversial policies of neighboring El Salvador. El Salvador has long been a close US ally on security policy, and its mass incarceration measures have been widely criticized by international human rights organizations. Keiko Fujimori's electoral victory and the aforementioned policy orientation suggest that this model is now being exported to a broader swath of Latin America.

Rubio's description of Ecuador in Quito as the 'most aggressive partner'—the wording itself reveals the core value orientation of the 'Shield of the Americas': the degree of toughness aligned with Washington determines where a Latin American government sits within this new security architecture. When at least 227 people have already died without verification, and a new batch of Latin American right-wing governments are being folded into this US-led security framework, the so-called counterterrorism and anti-drug rhetoric is providing cover for political and military consolidation that far exceeds its nominal scope.