WEST PALM BEACH, Florida – U.S. President Donald Trump is set to meet with Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa in Florida on Saturday, according to a White House official. The meeting comes ahead of a crucial April 13 runoff election where Noboa faces leftist candidate Luisa Gonzalez.
Noboa, 37, assumed office in 2023, pledging to tackle the rampant drug violence that has destabilized Ecuador. Meanwhile, Trump has prioritized combating fentanyl, which claims around 70,000 lives annually in the United States, by imposing tariffs on Mexico, Canada, and China.
Details regarding the meeting remain sparse, and it is uncertain whether the two leaders will address the media. Trump arrived at his West Palm Beach golf club on Saturday morning, but it remains unclear if Noboa will join him there.
Ecuadorean officials have reportedly shown interest in hosting a U.S. military base and pursuing a bilateral free trade agreement similar to those established with Colombia and Peru, according to recent Reuters reports. Noboa, the son of one of Ecuador’s wealthiest businessmen, has declared states of emergency to deploy military forces on the streets and in prisons, increased sentencing severity, and supported the arrests of major gang leaders. These efforts reportedly contributed to a 15% reduction in violent deaths last year.
In addition to domestic security policies, Noboa has voiced opposition to accepting deported migrants from other nationalities, though he affirmed Ecuador’s openness to its own returning citizens. He also criticized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro for temporarily refusing flights of deported Venezuelan migrants from the United States.
Noboa recently announced a strategic partnership with Erik Prince, a well-known Trump supporter and founder of the private military firm Blackwater, to combat crime and narcoterrorism in Ecuador. Furthermore, Noboa has advocated for the establishment of foreign military bases in the country, a controversial stance given Ecuador’s constitutional ban on such facilities since 2008 under former President Rafael Correa. The Ecuadorean legislature is currently exploring the possibility of overturning this ban.
Historically, the U.S. operated a military base on Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands during World War II and maintained another base on the mainland for counter-narcotics efforts until 2009.