(MENAFN) The Dominican Republic has agreed to let American personnel temporarily utilize restricted zones at two of the nation’s airports for anti-narcotics activities, with the arrangement remaining in effect until April 2026, President Luis Abinader confirmed on Monday.

"As was said on the day of the signing, last Wednesday, it lasts until April of next year," Abinader stated in translated remarks delivered during his routine weekly news briefing.

Last week, Abinader, accompanied by Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth in Santo Domingo, explained that the country had granted the United States permission to operate in restricted areas at San Isidro Air Base and Las Americas International Airport "for a limited time" to combat drug trafficking in the Caribbean.

The president emphasized that this agreement is grounded in the bilateral legal framework established by the 1995 anti-drug accords, later extended by a 2003 protocol.

This declaration comes amid a series of Pentagon operations aimed at vessels reportedly engaged in narcotics smuggling throughout the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific.

Since September, U.S. forces have conducted more than 20 strikes, resulting in at least 83 fatalities.

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