Noboa defends crime crackdown, says Ecuador’s economy is improving

Daniel Noboa used his State of the Union address in Quito to argue that Ecuador’s toughest anti-crime campaign is producing results, telling the National Assembly that his government had extradited a dozen crime bosses to the United States and seized nearly 300 tonnes of drugs. He cast those figures as proof that a hard line on organized crime is not just forceful, but effective, as he pressed ahead with the central theme of his presidency: security first.

The speech came as Noboa tried to reassure a country worn down by prison violence, drug trafficking and the reach of criminal networks that have reshaped daily life in parts of Ecuador. The young conservative president, who has aligned himself closely with the United States, paired his security message with a claim that the economy was improving, seeking to show that crackdowns and growth can move together rather than pull against each other. His message was plain. “We will seek them out, find them and extradite them,” he said.

That promise underscored the political gamble at the heart of Noboa’s strategy. By highlighting extraditions and large drug seizures, he is presenting his administration as one of order, results and international cooperation at a moment when many Ecuadorians remain fearful of violence. The numbers matter politically because they give his government something tangible to point to beyond rhetoric: 12 crime bosses sent to the United States, nearly 300 tonnes of drugs taken off the market, and a pledge to keep pursuing fugitives.

But the hardline approach has also drawn criticism, especially from those who warn that aggressive security policies can widen abuses when police powers expand and emergency measures become routine. Noboa’s own emphasis on closer ties with Washington, while useful in the fight against transnational crime, also places his crackdown under a sharper spotlight from civil-liberties advocates who see a risk that the state’s response could outpace oversight.

The address was therefore more than a progress report. It was a defense of a governing philosophy built around toughness, and a test of whether Ecuador’s security turn is becoming a substantive next step against organized crime or simply a symbolic escalation aimed at a frightened public. Noboa is betting that the answer can be both.