In the vast and ungoverned corridors of the Eastern Pacific, the United States military has struck at the hidden infrastructure of the drug trade — sinking a floating refueling vessel that sustained Ecuador's Los Choneros cartel in its at-sea operations. The action, carried out by Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere in early September 2026, reflects a deepening American commitment to dismantling not just the shipments of narcotics, but the logistical arteries that keep trafficking networks alive. It is part of a longer reckoning between hemispheric powers and the organized violence that has tu