Guatemala denies it agreed to US strikes against drug traffickers
President Bernardo Arévalo said Guatemala had requested security cooperation but had not approved US military strikes. The statement comes amid wider debate over Washington's expanding counter-narcotics operations in Latin America.
Guatemalan President Bernardo Arévalo told Al Jazeera that his government had requested security cooperation from Washington but had not approved direct US military strikes against drug-trafficking suspects. The statement followed a recent uptick in US operations against alleged 'narco-boats' in the Caribbean and along Latin American coasts.
According to Arévalo, the existing Guatemala-US treaty framework covers information sharing, training and border security but does not authorise the use of military force. Marcia Aguiluz, regional director of human-rights body CEJIL, said the organisation had logged increased citizen reports of US aerial transits over Guatemala in recent weeks. No direct White House response had been made public at the time of this report.
Wilson Center analyst Eric Olson said the statement reflected 'a tangible response to regional legitimacy concerns.' Colombia, Mexico and Brazil have also voiced diplomatic unease in recent weeks about Washington's expanding regional counter-narcotics posture. This article is not political-position advice.
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