As part of his 15-day international tour, Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa traveled to Israel for a two-day visit on Sunday, May 4, with a delegation of Ecuadorian officials. His itinerary included a tour of occupied Jerusalem, as well as meetings with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Israel Katz, and other top Israeli leaders.
Noboa’s visit comes amid an intensified Israeli blockade on Gaza and its publicly stated plans to expand military operations in order to fully occupy the Strip.
Read more: Israeli security cabinet approves plans to seize entire Gaza Strip and control delivery of humanitarian aid
Noboa pledges security cooperation with Israel
Security and intelligence cooperation was the top priority of Noboa’s visit. In his meeting with Herzog, Noboa pledged to cooperate more actively with the Israeli armed forces, as well as with its technological industry. In this way, the Ecuadorian government seeks to become one of Israel’s main regional allies in South America. Several South American countries have publicly condemned Israel’s actions in Gaza, with some recalling their ambassadors or completely severing diplomatic ties. Ecuador may be one of the only countries in the region currently aiming to strengthen its ties with Israel.
Noboa expressed his intention to make profound changes in the security structure of the Ecuadorian state under the advice and influence of Israel. “For us, it will be very valuable to count on your cooperation in technology and defense,” Noboa told his Israeli counterpart. For his part, Herzog said, “Ecuador and Israel have excellent relations, I am sure that we are going to improve them, especially in internal and external security, which is a priority, and that is why this visit is so important.”
A few hours later, Noboa met with Benjamin Netanyahu at the Prime Minister’s office in Jerusalem. Netanyahu expressed his willingness to travel to Ecuador soon to be “close to his (Ecuadorian) friends for their shared values as true democratic countries seeking prosperity, peace and security, which we are committed to do together.” Such a trip would be logistically complicated given the ICC warrant against Netanyahu, accused of war crimes.
For his part, Noboa said that “Israel and Ecuador have the same enemies,” which is why both countries are increasingly operating as “friends, allies, and as nations that cooperate with each other.”
In a post on X, Netanyahu said, “I met today with my friend, Ecuadorian President Daniel Novoa, in Jerusalem. We appreciated the decision to establish an innovation center in our capital. We agreed on practical cooperation in the fields of agriculture, water, defense, and security. Israel and Ecuador stand united in the face of common threats and work to promote peace, security, and prosperity.”
Energy agreement
Israeli cooperation will not only focus on security matters but also extend to fields such as technology and energy. The Secretary of Energy of Ecuador, Inés Manzano, and her counterpart, Eli Cohen, signed an agreement to develop renewable energies in Ecuador as part of the strengthening of the alliance between the governments of Noboa and Netanyahu.
One of the points that has attracted the most attention would be the supposed assistance that Israel would provide in the planning and management of energy in Ecuador, a country that has suffered long periods with blackouts of up to 14 hours.
While Israel presents itself as a leader in renewable energy and sustainable technology, activists have long argued that this image masks its inherently unsustainable and environmentally destructive practices. From the heavy environmental footprint of Israel’s high-tech military-industrial sectors, to the depletion of Palestinian natural resources, the restriction of food, water, and electricity in occupied Palestine, and the expansion of settlements that destroy ecosystems, Israel’s green image is increasingly seen as a form of greenwashing.
The content of Noboa’s agreement is not yet known, but some speculate that it could be a pre-agreement for Israeli companies to manage the electricity supply in Ecuador.
Noboa’s travel agenda mired in controversy
Many were surprised that President Daniel Noboa did not cancel his major international tour after the report of an earthquake in Esmeraldas, one of the country’s most impoverished provinces. Noboa, who was at the Vatican for Pope Francis’ funeral at the time, only sent a message on X, instructing his secretaries of state who remained in Ecuador (the most important ones had traveled with him to Europe) to mobilize to Esmeraldas to attend to the emergency.
The truth is that Noboa is a president who travels…a lot. According to a report by Primicias, Daniel Noboa has traveled more in a short time than any other president in Ecuador’s history. In just 18 months of governing, Noboa has visited 14 countries. Notably, he has traveled to the United States an astounding 13 times – averaging a visit every 42 days.
If we take the 18 most active months of his predecessors (Guillermo Lasso, Lenin Moreno, and Rafael Correa), Noboa surpasses them as the president who has been out of the country the most days. Therefore, it’s not surprising that Noboa would prioritize his international tour despite a natural disaster that left dozens of people homeless.
Noboa’s surprising action against the Muslim Brotherhood
A few days before his meeting with Netanyahu, Daniel Noboa issued an official decree in which he condemned the alleged activity of the “Muslim Brotherhood”, due to “its links with terrorist acts or attacks that may be committed in Ecuadorian territory”, and therefore ordered all security forces to act against this organization.
Some people have seen in this decree the intention to intimidate and persecute Ecuadorians who condemn the Israeli assault on Palestinians, and who often protest in front of the Israeli embassy in Quito.
The Muslim Brotherhood is one of the key Islamic political movements in countries in West Asia, so this decree could also be seen as a gesture of unsubtle diplomatic rapprochement between the governments of Quito and Tel Aviv, but also with the governments of other countries that condemn the activities of the Muslim Brotherhood in their territories.
Thanks to the various agreements Noboa made during this visit, Ecuador is becoming (progressively) a very important ally in the South American region for the Israeli geopolitical project. The Ecuadorian government has decided to entrust security information to Israeli intelligence agencies to find a way out of the country’s security crisis. Whether this bet will pay off will be seen in the medium term. Although, many are already skeptical about the move, as it is unclear how structural problems in Ecuador’s economic, political, and social relations can be solved through agreements like this.
