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The United States on Wednesday designated Ecuador-based Chone Killers as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT).
The U.S. said the Ecuadorian gang has committed many attacks targeting civilians, law enforcement officers, and government officials, including high-profile assassinations of public officials.
Chone Killers, according to the State Department, originated as a faction of Los Choneros — a designated FTO and SDGT — before splintering into a separate group in 2020.
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Washington says the U.S., alongside Ecuador and President Daniel Noboa, will continue to protect the hemisphere by cutting off illicit drug suppliers and disrupting traffickers’ revenue streams.
The latest action, the government notes, demonstrates the Trump Administration’s commitment to dismantling cartels and narcoterrorists in the region and ensuring the safety of the American people.
The designation was announced one day after the United States sanctioned two Mexican nationals and nine entities involved in fuel theft, and are linked to Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG).
CJNG, a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, was led by Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, a.k.a. “El Mencho,” until he was killed in February this year during a military operation in Mexico.
The Treasury’s action, according to Washington, highlights CJNG’s “exploitation of Mexico’s petroleum and petrochemicals sector,” labeled a threat to legitimate U.S. businesses and the financial system.
President Vladimir Putin denounced the latest European Union sanctions on Sunday, boasting that Russia has enough resources to weather the storm.
The premier delivered a speech in Moscow at the United Russia Party’s 23rd Congress, attended by hundreds of delegates, politicians, and guests.
He condemned Ukraine’s “targeted attacks on civilians and civilian facilities,” and the “recruitment of renegades within our country” to carry out sabotage and terrorist attacks.
The President accused Western countries of turning a blind eye to many actions against Russia, and instead “imposing new unlawful sanctions against us.”
“Russia is confidently repelling any attempts to deter our progress,” he said. “We have sufficient resources, means, and political will. Nobody should doubt that.”
The new EU sanctions, announced last week, will remain in effect for one year. The alliance has adopted 20 packages of sanctions since the full-scale war started in February 2022.
Putin emphasized that the “unprecedented pressure from the Western elites” was due to the inability to collectively defeat the Russian federation on the battlefield.
“Their attempts to destabilise the political situation and sow internal unrest are failing too,” he noted. “They keep encouraging Kiev, which they have chosen as a battering ram in their struggle.”
Putin said despite the challenges, Moscow will solve domestic development issues, elevate the economy to a new technological level, and “ensure the inviolability of Russia’s borders for decades ahead.”
