Costa Rican President Laura Fernandez has suggested that United States military operations in the country’s territory could bring national security benefits.
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operations → suggest → benefits
But she added caveats.
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she → add → caveats
In an interview published on Friday, Fernandez emphasised to the news service Reuters that such measures would require approval from the national legislature.
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measures → publish → legislature
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HRW → swear → operations
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She also added there were no plans in the works for US forces to operate in the country.
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forces → counter → country
“It would obviously be very good for national security if it were about pursuing a common objective against transnational crime, transnational drug trafficking, transnational terrorism,” said Fernandez, a right-wing populist who took office in May.
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who → pursue → May
Fernandez succeeded her mentor, former President Rodrigo Chaves, after a February election in which concerns about security and rising violence in the Central American country played a prominent role.
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concerns → succeed → role
Though she ran on a tough-on-crime platform, Fernandez has said that she is not currently considering a state of emergency to address the problem.
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she → run → problem
Such emergency declarations typically suspend key constitutional rights, in favour of giving police or the military added powers to crack down on violence.
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declarations → suspend → violence
That model has been popularised under the right-wing president of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele.
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model → popularise → Salvador
But critics point out that the states of emergency are meant to be short-term measures, not permanent ones.
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states → point → emergency
El Salvador has been under an emergency declaration since 2022, with the government extending it dozens of times.
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government → extend → times
Crime has become a top voter concern in Costa Rica.
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Crime → become → Rica
The Central American country’s homicide rate has doubled in the last decade, reaching 17.2 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2023.
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rate → double → 2023
That figure still places the country’s average well below many others in the region, but the change, partly attributed to increased drug trafficking activity, has startled many residents.
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change → place → residents
Fernandez’s remarks also reflect growing pressure from the US to reduce crime across the Western Hemisphere.
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remarks → reflect → Hemisphere
Since returning to office for a second term, US President Donald Trump has pushed to expand his country’s influence across Latin America, notably through military engagements.
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Trump → return → engagements
Earlier this year, he launched the “Shield of the Americas”, also known as the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition (ACCC), to bring together right-wing leaders across the region to address drug trafficking.
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he → launch → trafficking
Trump used the inaugural meeting to encourage Latin American governments to embrace a military-driven approach to crime, despite concerns about human rights.
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Trump → use → rights
He has also carried out and threatened military operations in sovereign countries, on the premise of combatting crime.
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Some countries, such as Mexico, have baulked at the prospect of US military forces carrying out operations on their territory.
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forces → baulk → territory
Critics point to Washington’s long record of interventions and rights abuses in the region.
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Critics → point → region
US forces, for instance, have recently carried out military operations with the right-wing government of Ecuador, in an effort to lower crime rates.
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forces → carry → rates
Ecuador’s armed forces, however, have been accused of crimes such as torture and enforced disappearance, abuses that experts warn could be worsened by support from the US.
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A July report from Human Rights Watch warns that the military collaboration between Ecuador and the US has already had dire consequences.
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Ecuadorian fishermen have reported facing attacks at sea, and in one case, Ecuadorian soldiers allegedly detained and tortured four Colombian farm workers, using methods such as mock executions, beatings and electric shocks.
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soldiers → report → executions
That incident reportedly took place during a raid near the border carried out with US support.
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incident → take → support
“The two countries’ security relationship is deepening at a moment when both governments have engaged in serious human rights violations fueled by their insistence on framing their confrontations with organised crime groups as a kind of war,” the report says.
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report → deepen → war
Those raids come after Ecuadorian voters rejected a referendum last year that would have allowed foreign countries to set up military bases in the country.
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countries → come → country
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