Guayaquil, Ecuador (EFE) — Ecuadorians will vote Sunday in a referendum that could reopen the door for foreign military bases in the country, a move drawing special attention from United States President Donald Trump, whose administration has expressed interest in restoring a US presence in the tropical eastern Pacific.
During World War II and again from 1999 to 2009, the United States operated a base in Manta, on Ecuador’s Pacific coast, before being forced to leave by then-President Rafael Correa.
The 2008 Constitution, championed by Correa, explicitly bans foreign military bases on Ecuadorian soil.
US officials signal interest in return
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem have both voiced support for re-establishing a strategic position in Ecuador if voters approve the proposal.
“If we’re invited to return, we’ll consider it, it’s a very strategic point,” Rubio said during a visit to Quito, citing the fight against “narco-terrorism” and illegal fishing.
Noem, who has visited Ecuador twice in three months, toured the coastal bases of Manta and Salinas last week with Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa.
The president ruled out any US return to the Galápagos Islands after environmental and political backlash, but left open the option for new facilities on the mainland.
Noboa defends plan as security partnership
Noboa insists the initiative does not necessarily mean military installations but could include “illegal fishing control bases,” “drug enforcement centers,” or facilities shared with multiple countries.
“The goal is to create an international cooperation hub for maritime security and anti-drug operations,” Noboa said, arguing that the Correa administration “handed the country over to drug trafficking” under the guise of defending sovereignty.
Interior Minister John Reimberg added that Ecuador must “be allied not only with the US but with many nations” in the fight against narcotrafficking and terrorism.
The government also said it is in talks with Brazil about a possible Amazon police base in the provinces of Sucumbíos and Orellana, heavily affected by illegal mining.
Opposition warns of “loss of sovereignty”
Correa and his allies strongly oppose the measure, arguing that foreign bases will not solve Ecuador’s severe security crisis, which currently averages one homicide per hour.
“Noboa wants to hand over our country, our sovereignty, and our resources to foreign economic and military powers,” said opposition leader and former presidential candidate Luisa González.
Correa claimed that Ecuador prospered after the US left Manta and accused American soldiers of having “full immunity” and committing “abuses.”
He also pointed to Colombia, which has long received US military support, as proof that such alliances have not stopped cocaine production. EFE
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