A spate of attacks against Ecuadorian security forces near the Colombian border is the latest sign that areas of post-insurgency Colombia will drive violence at home and abroad. On March 26, unidentified attackers — believed by Ecuadorian authorities to be former members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) — damaged an army truck using an explosive device. The incident is the latest in a series of explosive attacks against army and police units in northwestern Ecuador. In 2018 there have been four separate attacks against Ecuadorian forces in Esmeraldas province, all believed to be carried out by the same former FARC militants. One purpose of the acts is likely to intimidate authorities, making them more reluctant to seize cocaine shipments or make arrests.

The attacks are also a byproduct of northwestern Ecuador's decadeslong role as a transit route for cocaine produced in southwestern Colombia. After FARC demobilized in late 2016, disputes over cocaine trafficking in Colombia's southwestern Narino department intensified. The three main groups that have begun fighting for control of the export routes in the area are former FARC members, the Gaitanista Self-Defense Forces of Colombia and the National Liberation Army. And the former militants have taken take a more active role in Ecuador as well, likely spurred by the competition and the absence of any coherent FARC hierarchy that could keep its former members in line.

In addition to requiring the tactical attention of the Ecuadorian army and police, the former FARC members' violent attacks may also foster increased U.S.-Ecuador security cooperation. Ecuador's military has modest capabilities, and its northwestern region will likely remain a hotbed of trafficking activity and violence for years. Unlike his predecessor, current Ecuadorian President Lenin Moreno does not perceive the United States as a threat to his rule. Moreover, his administration is trying to push the Ecuadorian government closer to the political center, working to join regional trade deals such as the Pacific Alliance. Thus, it may well integrate the task of limiting spillover Colombian violence into its larger political efforts.