The U.S. team is made up of President Joe Biden’s Advisor Christopher Dodd; the head of the Southern Command, Laura Richardson; and other high-ranking officials.

According to the U.S. Embassy in Quito, such a visit to Ecuador will be paid till January 25, aimed at speeding up security cooperation and discussing collaborative approaches to confront threats from transnational criminal organizations.

At the end of the meeting, Ecuador’s Foreign Minister Gabriela Sommerfeld is expected to provide statements to the press on the type of collaboration that Washington will offer.

omr/jha/avr