U.S. Imperialism Attacks Ecuador

U.S. imperialism initiated a military operation against Ecuador on March 3 against “designated terrorist organizations” in the country.

The operation so far consists of “raids” against “suspected drug shipment facilities and other drug-related sites,” according to an anonymous U.S. official. Monopoly media reports that US Special Forces are assisting Ecuador troops with intelligence and logistics, and not directly participating in the attacks.

While the exact specifics of U.S. activity remain unclear, one anonymous official told The Intercept that “Operation Southern Spear,” to which this attack belongs, “was always going to escalate…. It wasn’t going to be just boat strikes forever.”

U.S. Southern Command justified the campaign as “taking decisive action to confront narco-terrorists who have long inflicted terror, violence, and corruption on citizens throughout the hemisphere.” In the announcement Southern Command also shared videos of helicopters taking off in an attempt at “shock-and-awe” intimidation.

The attack comes just one day after Commander of SOUTHCOM, General Francis Donovan, met with the President of Ecuador, Daniel Noboa. At the meeting Donovan “expressed gratitude for Ecuador’s contributions in combating cartels and narco-trafficking as well as its efforts to strengthen security in the Western Hemisphere.”

After that, Ecuador expelled all Cuban diplomatic personnel from the country on March 4 as U.S. imperialism continues its genocidal blockade of the island.

“Narco-terrorism” has long been a pretext for U.S. imperialism to extend its domination of the nations of Latin America. In the terrorist bombings in the Caribbean Sea that targeted Venezuelan fisherman throughout 2025, U.S. State Department officials frequently lied and characterized the victims as “narco-terrorists,” despite that claim being repeatedly disproved. At least 150 people have been killed in strikes on boats in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean since last year.

Ecuador is a strategic country for U.S. imperialism. It borders Peru, where the Communist Party has been leading the People’s War since 1980 which U.S. imperialism has failed to defeat, and Colombia, which U.S. officials threatened as potentially being targeted next after the January 3 abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

U.S. imperialism continues to implement the so-called “Trump Corollary” of the Monroe Doctrine—which inaugurated U.S. domination of Latin America in 1823—in order to consolidate its hold on the continent, making use of its colonies and semi-colonies as military springboards. At the same time, the masses of Latin America combat and resist more forcefully and struggle for their national liberation.

Image: Ecuadoran Armed Forces patrol the streets following 2024 “narco-terrorist” actions in Guayas, Ecuador. Source: Presidencia de la República del Ecuador.

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