Ecuador government will ask assembly to approve bringing down unauthorized planes

FILE PHOTO: Ecuador's President Guillermo Lasso addresses the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly at the U.N. headquarters in New York, U.S., September 21, 2021. Mary Altaffer/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

QUITO (Reuters) - Ecuador's government will ask the legislature to approve a law that would allow the Andean country to bring down irregular airplanes, President Guillermo Lasso said on Wednesday, part of a crackdown by his administration on crime and drug trafficking.

Earlier this month Lasso declared a state of emergency https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/ecuadors-president-declares-60-day-state-emergency-over-rising-crime-2021-10-19 that allows for increased police patrols, among other things. He also wants to set up a new coastal radar system.