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Bolivia takes fight against cartels to Panama for intelligence and border control
🇧🇴 Bolivia /Conflict & Security

Bolivia takes fight against cartels to Panama for intelligence and border control

From El Deber · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • Bolivia will participate in the Coalition of the Americas against cartels in Panama to enhance regional security cooperation.
  • The initiative aims to strengthen intelligence sharing, border control, airspace monitoring, and the use of technology against transnational organized crime.
  • Bolivia emphasizes a strategy focused on regional coordination while respecting national sovereignty and legal frameworks.

Bolivia is set to participate in the upcoming Coalition of the Americas against cartels in Panama, signaling a strengthened commitment to regional cooperation in combating transnational organized crime. The initiative prioritizes enhancing intelligence sharing, bolstering border and airspace control, and integrating advanced technology to counter criminal networks.

Bolivian Minister of Defense Ernesto Justiniano announced that Bolivia will present its own security agenda at the meeting. The country aims to address the growing influence of criminal organizations like Brazil's First Capital Command (PCC) and Red Command (CV). Justiniano stressed that focusing solely on drug seizures is insufficient, as criminal groups can reconstitute their operations if their funding, logistics, and corruption networks remain intact.

We can take their drugs, but if they retain their financing, their logistics, and their corruption networks, they can rebuild themselves.

— Ernesto JustinianoExplaining why a comprehensive strategy beyond drug seizures is necessary to combat criminal organizations.

"We can take their drugs, but if they retain their financing, their logistics, and their corruption networks, they can rebuild themselves," Justiniano stated. Bolivia's proposed strategy centers on regional coordination, emphasizing "coordination with sovereignty, legality, and results." This approach seeks to foster collaboration among American nations while respecting each country's legal framework and sovereign rights.

The participation comes at a critical time for Bolivia, which has recently experienced a series of violent incidents attributed to disputes between the PCC and CV operating in the region. Several assassinations, particularly in border areas with Brazil, have been linked to contract killings, prompting increased police and military security operations. Bolivian authorities believe that enhanced cooperation with neighboring countries is crucial for anticipating the movements of these cross-border criminal structures and disrupting their logistical and financial support networks.

Our line will be clear: coordination with sovereignty, legality, and results.

— Ernesto JustinianoOutlining Bolivia's approach to international security cooperation.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by El Deber in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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