The Government of the Argentine Republic, under the firm leadership of President Javier G. Milei, has marked an unprecedented milestone in the defense of national security by formally declaring the bloodthirsty Ecuadorian narcocriminal gang Chone Killers as a terrorist organization.
This historic determination, formalized on August 6 through an Official Statement from the Office of the President and endorsed in the Official Bulletin, aims primarily to deliver a lethal preventive blow to prevent any attempt to establish or finance this criminal organization on Argentine territory.
The measure demonstrates the relentless determination of the new Argentina to combat transnational organized crime without any hesitation or concessions, drastically contrasting with the open borders and passivity policies of previous administrations.
The firm stance of the Casa Rosada strategically and exemplarily aligns with the foreign policy of the United States, a power that on July 1 designated the Chone Killers as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT).
This historic American measure was signed and supported by the influential Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, who harshly stated: "Ecuadorian gangs help Mexican cartels transport and export illicit drugs to finance terrorism and criminal activity".
Furthermore, the Argentine decree acts in absolute solidarity with the President of Ecuador, Daniel Noboa, who in January 2024 declared 22 criminal groups, including the Chone Killers, as terrorist organizations in his own territory amid an unprecedented wave of violence. The declaration occurs just during the pivotal trip of Javier Milei to Ecuadorian lands to hold a key bilateral meeting with his counterpart Daniel Noboa.
On a technical and operational level, this measure was adopted thanks to impeccable institutional coordination between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship and the Ministry of National Security.
The decision is based on rigorous classified reports prepared by the competent areas of both ministries, which credibly establish that this group represents a real and potential external threat to national security, endangering the life, property, and heritage of the inhabitants of the Nation.
The registration of the gang in the Public Register of Persons and Entities Linked to Acts of Terrorism and Their Financing (RePET), under the Ministry of Justice, immediately enables the application of severe financial sanctions and operational restrictions aimed at suffocating their capacity for action and protecting the local financial system from being used for their illicit purposes.
