US Steps Up Military Activity at Ecuador Air Base, Report Says

The notable signal here is the quiet, incremental character of the buildup: counter-narcotics framing, aircraft movements and construction rather than a formal basing announcement. That matters for regional security watchers and for anyone tracking how US military posture in Latin America is expanding without a headline-grabbing agreement. The open question is whether the construction and flight tempo at Manta continue to scale, and whether the counter-narcotics rationale remains the sole public explanation as activity grows.