The embassy added that the U.S. has allocated more than $1.1 million for specialized training, tactical equipment and infrastructure improvements at the bases of the Salvadoran National Navy in the coastal areas of Costa del Sol, Meanguera Island and Puerto El Triunfo.
On Monday, the U.S. government handed in Pacific waters, the U.S. embassy reported in a statement.
The source detailed that the boats are “reconditioned and equipped to carry out anti-narcotics operations,” which “shall strengthen El Salvador’s ability to combat drug trafficking in the region.”
According to the diplomatic legation, the U.S. ambassador to El Salvador, William Duncan, “recognizes the success that the Salvadoran government has had and the commitment to deter illegal drug trafficking.”
“I hope our close teamwork will continue in the coming years so that together we can make our countries, safer and more prosperous nations for all,” Ducan said.
The head of the Ministry of Defense, René Merino Monroy, said that the boats “will join the work being done by the National Navy in the fight against drug trafficking,” according to the statement.
The embassy added that the U.S. has allocated more than $1.1 million for specialized training, tactical equipment and infrastructure improvements at the bases of the Salvadoran National Navy in the coastal areas of Costa del Sol, Meanguera Island and Puerto El Triunfo.
The Minister of Security, Gustavo Villatoro, stressed that between 2019 and the first months of 2023 more than 33 tons of drugs have been seized, valued by the authorities at more than 710 million dollars.
El Salvador is part of a list of the United States government with the highest production and transit of narcotics, released in mid-September, along with countries such as Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Panama, Peru and Venezuela.
The President of the United States has to send this list to Congress every year to determine the budget dedicated to the fight against drug trafficking.
This article has been translated from the original which first appeared in La Prensa Grafica