US confirms Green Berets, Black Hawks and warships deployed to Ecuador's Esmeraldas and Manta

Esmeraldas Governor Juan Jaramillo confirmed on the record that the US Army's 7th Special Forces Group is working alongside Ecuadorian forces against 'narcoterrorism' along the Colombian border, while Ecuadorian Defense Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo announced the arrival of three Black Hawk helicopters and two US warships at the Pacific port of Manta after meeting SOUTHCOM commander Gen. Francis Donovan there. Loffredo said the package would roughly triple Ecuador's maritime interdiction capacity along drug-trafficking routes. The deployment formalizes and expands the joint operations first launched in March 2026, predating and distinct from Hegseth's disputed 17 Aug claim about Colombia, Guatemala and Honduras. Officials did not disclose troop numbers, rules of engagement, or deployment duration; a June 2026 Ecuadorian government decree grants US military personnel 180-day visa-free entry and SOFA-style immunity from migration sanctions.