NEWS OF THE AMERICAS: More than 60% voted against a proposal to allow foreign boots on the ground, official referendum results show

Voters in Ecuador have rejected a proposal to bring US military bases back to the country. This decision was made in a national referendum held on Sunday.

With around 95% of ballots counted, the official tally shows that 60.58% voted against President Daniel Noboa’s initiative. The initiative aimed to allow foreign troops to operate in Ecuador. This move was allegedly part of efforts to fight organized crime and drug trafficking.

Noboa said he accepts the results. ’We consulted with the Ecuadorians, and they have spoken. We fulfilled our promise to ask them directly. We respect the will of the Ecuadorian people,’ he wrote on X.

US troops were stationed at an airbase in the port city of Manta until 2009. Then, then-President Rafael Correa refused to renew the lease. He banned foreign bases in Ecuador.

Noboa offered US President Donald Trump the opportunity to station troops in the country, at different times.

The US president pitched Manta as a possible location. He also suggested the city of Salinas. Additionally, one of the islands of the Galapagos Archipelago was proposed. 

US Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem met with Noboa in July as she toured Ecuador’s military sites.

The vote occurred during the US military buildup in the Caribbean. Trump ordered strikes on alleged cartel vessels at that time.

He accused the leftist presidents of Venezuela and Colombia of aiding ’narco terrorists.’

At the same time, Trump has sought to strengthen ties with conservative leaders in the region.

This includes Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele. He offered to house migrants deported from the US in Salvadoran prisons.

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