US Air Force and US Southern Command officials have known for at least a year that Ecuador wanted US counterdrug forces out of Forward Operating Location Manta. The US has been operating from there under a 1999 agreement that is slated to end next year. According to a July 29 Associated Press report, Ecuador’s Foreign Ministry formally notified the US Embassy of its decision not to renew the agreement. Although last year US officials mentioned Columbia or Peru as possible new locations, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack on July 30 would only say, “There’s still a need for the mission, so we’ll look at how we accomplish the mission, perhaps in other locations or by other means.” Earlier this year, Adm. James Stavridis, SOUTHCOM commander, told lawmakers that he felt other “friends and allies in the region” would provide support for the mission. McCormack noted, too, though that Ecuador “has promised continued close cooperation to confront the threat of drug smuggling, and we look forward to this continued cooperation.”
Airmen and Guardians in the Active and Reserve component, as well as civilian employees, in “mission critical and high-risk populations” are now required to receive influenza vaccinations annually to “preserve force readiness,” according to a recent Department of the Air Force memo.