As crime surges, Ecuador to vote on return of foreign military bases


FILE PHOTO: Ecuador?s President Daniel Noboa and U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem shake hands at Eloy Alfaro Air Base in Manta, Ecuador, November 5, 2025. Alex Brandon/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

QUITO (Reuters) -Ecuadoreans grappling with a surge in violent crime will head to the polls on Sunday to decide whether to allow the return of foreign military bases — which President Daniel Noboa says are central to fighting organized crime - and whether they back convening an assembly to rewrite the constitution.

Once considered one of the safest countries in Latin America, Ecuador has become a key drug transit hub in recent years because of its location on the Pacific, triggering an unprecedented security crisis and battering its already-fragile economy.

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