Rubio to seek $45 million in additional security funding for Ecuador

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said during a visit to Ecuador on Wednesday that he would seek $45 million in additional security funding for the Latin American country, as well as additional equipment, to help tackle drug trafficking. Rubio met with Ecuador's President Daniel Noboa during a swing through three Latin American countries with leaders closely aligned with US President Donald Trump and his administration's effort to reassert US dominance in the region. Speaking after their meeting, Rubio said Washington was increasingly working with Noboa's government to crack down on drug trafficking organisations, including with joint strikes on boats believed to be used by drug smugglers. "These are not ordinary groups. Clearly, they engage in common crime, but they have terrorist capabilities across the region, and that must be confronted. They must be dismantled, they must be defeated, and we are committed to doing that," Rubio said. Rubio on Wednesday designated the Ecuador-based gang Los Tiguerones as a foreign terrorist organisation, after similar designations were made against two other Ecuador-based gangs last year. The State Department said the group was linked to narcotra...