On March 13th I posted about ‘Former Blackwater Jefe Erik Prince Gets the Nod To Help Ecuador Fight Organized Crime‘. Now he’s on the ground and on camera promoting his and his partners apparently contracted tasks, tackling organized crime in the country as operation “Apollo 13″ is under way, a large-scale anti-drug operation in Guayaquil, Ecuador.
However, as Prince and his associates’ American PMSCs get on task in Ecuador, some Ecuadorians, including a presidential candidate, are not too happy with this development. Quito (Prensa Latina) reported on April 3 ‘Candidate González rejects Blackwater’s arrival in Ecuador‘. The matter has become politically charged during these Presidential elections. Many seem to believe that what Ecuador President Daniel Noboa is doing by hiring American PMSCs this late in the elections is a purely political stunt.
‘The presidential candidate of the Citizen Revolution, Luisa González, today questioned the arrival of a delegation from the U.S. private military company Blackwater to Ecuador to provide security advice to the government.
“That money, which will be used to pay mercenaries who don’t know Ecuador, should be used to equip the police and the armed forces,” the presidential candidate emphasized this Thursday in a radio interview.’
CNN reports: Blackwater founder Erik Prince joins security operation in Ecuador
Here is an Adel Flores LinkedIn posting with Prince doing a bit of PR on an MOD video and stating what he is doing in the country: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/florescmf_erik-prince-the-founder-of-private-security-activity-7314399071031492608-LjxE?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAALG3h0BmCuAbEV3iAYJNZHCQ1bHqD_qO9k
Will this American PMSC contract succeed? It’s possible. But it could also fail. This contracting might help in some ways to at least help fight organized crime. But at the same time, it cold be ineffective or at worst, disastrous. Also, it might all depend on the election results.
Something I’m not clear on is what official company name is Prince (and/or his associates) operating under? Anyone know?
Needless to say, this will put a target on Prince and his associates.
Let’s see where how this goes.
–RdM
Also see LinkedIn posting: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/royce-de-melo-39172813_erik-prince-the-founder-of-private-security-activity-7314431834568761345-ivbA?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAALG3h0BmCuAbEV3iAYJNZHCQ1bHqD_qO9k
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