Guatemala requests US military cooperation against drug trafficking

Guatemala has requested US military cooperation spanning access to equipment, training and experts to assist Guatemalan operations against drug trafficking, the country’s president, Bernardo Arévalo, said on Thursday. The joint plans stopped short of US military operations on Guatemalan soil and fall within existing bilateral agreements, the government noted. “There is no agreement authorizing foreign military operations on national territory,” the government said in a statement. It added that Arévalo and Guatemala’s defense minister, Henry Sáenz, had spoken with the US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth , to confirm the terms for US cooperation, after Sáenz had requested help. The deal was intended to expand on a strategy implemented in 2024. “We have discussed the possibilities of intensifying the collaboration that has been taking place within the framework of existing bilateral agreements,” Arévalo told reporters. The New York Times first reported on the recent talks. In a report on Wednesday, it characterized the move as part of a broader White House strategy to normalize a US military presence across Latin America to gain leverage over Mexico. The Pentagon also intends to press Honduras to accept joint military action, according to the report. The Pentagon said it would not speculate on future operations or discuss matters of operational security. …