Peru joins US-led ‘Shield of the Americas’ security alliance

What the report says

Peru has agreed to join the US-led “Shield of the Americas,” also called the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition, a regional security initiative focused on intelligence sharing and military cooperation against drug cartels and other criminal groups. Al Jazeera reported that the announcement came on Thursday in Lima after talks between Peru’s newly elected right-wing president, Keiko Fujimori, and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

According to the report, Fujimori said Peru understands the challenge of confronting organized crime and sees value in closer cooperation. Her government also awarded Rubio one of Peru’s highest civilian honours during the visit. Rubio praised the move as part of a broader push to strengthen US ties with conservative governments in South America and argued that coordinated force is needed against transnational criminal networks.

The decision comes as Peru faces rising concerns over extortion and drug trafficking, and as the country remains one of the world’s major cocaine producers. Al Jazeera also noted that the announcement has drawn criticism from those worried about US influence in Latin America, given the region’s history of foreign intervention. Protesters in Lima denounced the alliance and rejected the idea of outside military involvement.

The report said the shift also fits into wider US efforts to counter China’s growing economic presence in Peru, where Washington has raised concerns about Chinese investment, including a major port project. Peru’s security and economic importance to the US was underscored by earlier American designations and proposed military funding linked to a naval base near Lima.