Latin America Defense Monitor — October 24–31, 2026
Weekly Edition · Sunday, 1 November 2026 · Issue #28
Executive Summary
The Big Picture: US troops are training in Colombia, new US activity is reported at an air base in Ecuador, and four missing Salvadoran airmen are still unaccounted for in Haiti. For US readers, the common thread is how far American security policy now reaches, from jungle training grounds to a UN-backed force in Port-au-Prince.
On Tuesday, 27 October, more than 300 US soldiers began arriving at the Tolemaida military base in central Colombia for the Southern Vanguard exercise, which runs until 11 November. Colombia’s Defense Ministry says the training covers counter-drug work, illegal mining and medical evacuation.
An investigation published on 27 October, based on satellite images and flight-tracking data, described a growing US presence at Taura air base, near Guayaquil in Ecuador. Ecuador’s president, Daniel Noboa, said in September that the base would become the centre of military cooperation with Washington.
Bottom Line Up Front: Washington’s footprint in the region is growing in training, flights and construction. In Haiti, the fate of four men is still the open question.
Latin America Defense Monitor: Where Things Stand
The Week’s Key Stories
24–31 October 2026
Search for Four Missing Airmen Drags On
Four Salvadoran aviation technicians serving with the Gang Suppression Force, a UN-authorised mission, have been missing since a gang ambush near Port-au-Prince on Sunday, 18 October. President Nayib Bukele sent special forces to find them, and about 100 troops arrived on Thursday, 22 October.
Reports put the number of Salvadoran troops sent to Haiti at about 1,000. El Salvador has not published a total that we could verify.
Over the weekend of 24–25 October, press reports said four badly burned bodies had been found outside the capital. Bukele said that the remains handed to his forces were those of a child, a much taller man and a person in another army’s uniform, not of his men.
The Gang Suppression Force says it cannot confirm that the remains are the missing men’s. At the time of the attack it had about 2,000 personnel in place, against 5,500 authorised.
US Soldiers Train at Tolemaida, Court Charges Officers
More than 300 US soldiers are in Colombia for Southern Vanguard, a joint exercise at the Tolemaida military base in Nilo, Cundinamarca, running from 27 October to 11 November. It is the fourth time Colombia has hosted the exercise, according to the Defense Ministry.
Colombia’s 1st Anti-Narcotics Battalion trains alongside a US Army light mountain-infantry unit. The ministry says the focus is counter-drug work, illegal mining and medical evacuation.
On Friday, 30 October, Colombia’s Special Jurisdiction for Peace, the court created by the 2016 peace deal to judge war-era crimes, formally charged 12 former army and police members over Operation Orion in Medellín. The accused include retired generals Mario Montoya, then commander of the army’s 4th Brigade, and José Leonardo Gallego, then head of the Medellín police.
Eight of the accused are former soldiers and four are former police officers. They face war-crimes and crimes-against-humanity charges for events in Comuna 13, a Medellín hillside district, between 2001 and 2004, including Operation Orion, a military offensive against urban militias that began on 16 October 2002.
New Signs of a US Build-Up at Taura Air Base
An investigation published on 27 October used satellite images dated 10 October and flight-tracking data to document new activity at Taura air base, near Guayaquil on Ecuador’s Pacific coast. It found dozens of tents, a retractable hangar tent about 40 by 20 metres (131 by 66 feet) and V-22 Ospreys, tilt-rotor transport aircraft, among the aircraft detected.
The flight data showed about 20 US Air Force and Marine Corps flights between June and mid-October, linked to bases in North Carolina and Delaware. President Daniel Noboa said on 22 September that Taura would become the centre of military cooperation with the United States and other countries.
Ecuadorian voters rejected foreign military bases in a referendum on 16 November 2025. Mauricio Salazar, a former Air Force commander, questioned the legality of the US presence in September, according to Ecuadorian reports.
Washington Shifts Army Focus South
On Tuesday, 27 October, the US military struck a boat in the Eastern Pacific and killed five people, the latest in a campaign of more than 70 strikes on suspected drug boats since September 2025. Boat strikes remain the most visible part of US military action in the region.
Earlier this month, Gen. Joseph A. Ryan, who leads US Army Western Hemisphere Command, the Army’s command for the Americas, said Army exercises in the region would focus on counter-cartel work. Reports of about 600 soldiers from the 10th Mountain Division, a US Army light-infantry unit, heading south were challenged by the US Embassy in Panama, which said only 120 were there for a two-week jungle course.
What to Watch Next
7–30 days
What Is Not Known
as of 1 November
The total number of Salvadoran troops in Haiti has not been confirmed, and nor has the identity of the remains found this week. We have seen no confirmed proof of life for the four technicians.
The legal basis, the number of US personnel, their mission and the duration of the US presence at Taura have not been made public. Ecuador’s government has not published the terms in the sources we checked.
For Southern Vanguard, the US unit designation and rules of engagement are not public. Defence arguments in the Orion case are not in the reports we reviewed.
We did not find verified defence news for Venezuela, Mexico, Cuba, Argentina or Central America for 24–31 October, so this edition leaves them out.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Southern Vanguard exercise in Colombia?
Southern Vanguard is a joint exercise at the Tolemaida military base in which more than 300 US soldiers train with Colombian troops. It runs from 27 October to 11 November 2026 and covers counter-drug work, illegal mining and medical evacuation.
What is happening at Ecuador’s Taura air base?
An investigation published on 27 October found new tents, a hangar tent and about 20 US military flights between June and mid-October. President Daniel Noboa has said Taura will host military cooperation with the United States.
What happened to the four Salvadorans in Haiti?
Four Salvadoran aviation technicians with the Gang Suppression Force vanished after a gang ambush on 18 October. They have not been found, and the force says it cannot confirm that remains found this week are theirs.
Who was charged in the Operation Orion case?
Colombia’s Special Jurisdiction for Peace charged 12 former army and police members on 30 October, including retired generals Mario Montoya and José Leonardo Gallego. Eight are former soldiers and four former police officers.
Sources: Colombia’s Ministry of Defense and Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP, 30 October); Ecuador’s presidency (22 September statement on Taura); US Army Western Hemisphere Command; the US Embassy in Panama; the Salvadoran presidency; the Gang Suppression Force; satellite and flight-tracking data as analysed in the 27 October Taura investigation; The Rio Times’ own reporting.
Background: Colombia Charges 12 Ex-Soldiers and Police. More from Haiti, Colombia and Ecuador.
Previous edition: October 17–23, 2026. All editions: Defense Monitor.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief