A tense standoff in the eastern Pacific has reignited tensions after a US patrol vessel intercepted an Ecuadorian fishing boat in international waters, leading to the vessel being destroyed and its crew left adrift. The incident occurred just days before a US official was honored in Quito for promoting regional stability, highlighting a sharp contrast between diplomatic gestures and military actions. Fishermen claim their livelihoods have been devastated, while US authorities reaffirm a hardline stance on enforcement in the area. The clash raises questions about the balance between maritime security and the rights of local communities.
Attorney says fishers ‘losing their livelihoods’, but Marco Rubio maintains US still willing to ‘blow up ships if need be’While the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, was being decorated in Quito by Ecuador’s president for “helping to promote peace in the region”, 10 Ecuadorian fishers whose boat had been blown up by US forces were adrift in the eastern Pacific.On 8 September, a day before Rubio arrived, a US patrol vessel intercepted the fishing boat Don Rufo in international waters near Ecuador. Continue reading...
