Five South American Nations Sign Regional Pact Against Organized Crime

2026-05-29 07:30:48

(MENAFN- The Rio Times) LATIN AMERICA · SECURITY

Key Facts

- The headline: Foreign ministers of Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru signed a regional cooperation pact in Santiago on Thursday, a South American organized crime pact that will create a permanent working group on transnational gangs.

- Five priorities: The Compromiso Regional de Santiago, as the agreement is called in Spanish, sets five areas of joint work: intelligence sharing, border control, illicit financial flows, technical cooperation and regional response mechanisms.

- Calendar: The working group will hold its first meeting in 90 days, with leadership rotating annually in alphabetical order, and the five chancellors will reconvene in 180 days, likely in Buenos Aires, to review progress.

- Next step abroad: Chilean foreign minister Francisco Pérez Mackenna said the next move is to present the agreement to the 46th General Assembly of the Organization of American States, the OAS, to invite more countries onto the initiative.

- Latin American impact: The pact ties together five governments of differing political colors around shared security goals across more than half the continent's southern landmass.

The new South American organized crime pact signed in Santiago on Thursday brings together five governments from Cape Horn to the Andes for a coordinated response to transnational gangs. Foreign ministers from Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru committed to share intelligence and align legal tools against networks that operate freely across borders.

What the South American organized crime pact actually does

The high-level meeting was hosted at the Chilean foreign ministry in Santiago and convened by host minister Francisco Pérez Mackenna. He led discussions with Argentine foreign minister Pablo Quirno, Bolivian foreign minister Fernando Aramayo, Ecuadorian foreign minister Gabriela Sommerfeld and Peruvian foreign minister Carlos Pareja. Several countries also sent their security ministers.

Chilean president José Antonio Kast inaugurated the session. Argentine security minister Alejandra Monteoliva attended with Quirno, while Peru sent interior minister José Zapata alongside Pareja and Ecuador included deputy security minister Jorge Rivadeneira. Chilean security minister Martín Arrau and national prosecutor Ángel Valencia rounded out the host delegation.

The signed document instructs a permanent technical and operational working group to draft a joint action plan with measurable, verifiable results. Leadership of the group will rotate annually in alphabetical order among the five member states. The first meeting is scheduled within 90 days of the signing.

Five priority areas in the South American organized crime pact

The agreement identifies five priority areas. The first is intelligence cooperation, including real-time exchange of investigative information between national police and prosecutors. The second is reinforced border control across the long shared frontiers of the Andes and the Amazon.

The third area focuses on illicit financial flows, taking in money laundering, tax evasion and financial intelligence work. The fourth covers technical and legal cooperation, with the explicit goal of harmonizing investigative tools across jurisdictions. The fifth area is the creation of permanent regional response mechanisms rather than ad hoc summits.

Chilean prosecutor Ángel Valencia called on member states to move from joint investigative teams toward what he termed mixed investigation bodies. The shift would require legal and treaty changes in each country to align investigative standards and elevate criminal pursuit across borders.

Why South American governments converged now

The signatories span a political spectrum from the conservative governments of Chile under Kast and Argentina under Javier Milei, to the Andean coalitions led by Bolivia under Rodrigo Paz, Ecuador under Daniel Noboa and Peru under Dina Boluarte. The convergence around security policy cuts across those ideological lines.

Each delegation arrived with a specific national diagnosis. Bolivia faces armed groups that Aramayo said are funded by organized crime and are challenging constitutional order in parts of the country. Ecuador, where homicide rates surged after 2022, has placed transnational narcotrafficking at the top of its foreign policy agenda.

Peru and Chile share growing concerns over the Venezuelan-origin gang Tren de Aragua and prison-born networks that move members and contraband through Andean corridors. Argentina has placed Rosario, its main grain port, at the center of an anti-narcotics push under Monteoliva.

From the signing room: voices on the record

Pérez Mackenna told the gathering that, given the cross-border nature of the problem, national efforts on their own are insufficient and must be complemented by political cooperation, technical coordination and information sharing. Kast, addressing the chancellors, framed the moment as historic and invoked the regional liberation tradition of figures such as Bolívar, San Martín, O'Higgins and Sucre.

Quirno called the agreement a milestone that turns political will into method and mechanism. Aramayo of Bolivia stressed that the document is not a declaration of intent but a commitment to operational delivery, saying member countries cannot afford to be defeated by organized crime financiers operating across their territories.

Sommerfeld of Ecuador called for joint, coordinated and timely actions to strengthen state capacities. Pareja of Peru emphasized the need for permanent rather than episodic coordination. Arrau, the Chilean security minister, said the test will be whether the group reconvenes to measure concrete results rather than simply take another photograph.

What comes next for the South American organized crime pact

The technical working group meets within 90 days. Six months after the Santiago signing the five foreign ministers will reconvene to review what has been done. Buenos Aires is the likely venue for that second meeting, with Argentine hosting reflecting the alphabetical rotation of leadership.

Chile will also carry the framework to the 46th General Assembly of the OAS later this year. Pérez Mackenna said the goal is to recruit additional American states to the agreement and to anchor it within the inter-American system.

Brazil, Colombia and Paraguay are watching the development closely. Each carries significant transnational crime exposure of its own and any expansion of the pact to include them would alter the regional balance of cooperation. None attended the Santiago signing.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Compromiso Regional de Santiago?

It is a regional cooperation agreement signed by the foreign ministers of Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru on May 28, 2026, in Santiago. It establishes a permanent working group on transnational organized crime with five priority areas.

Which countries signed the pact?

Chile hosted as convener and was joined by Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru. Foreign ministers led their delegations and several countries also sent security ministers and deputy security ministers.

What are the five priority areas?

The five priority areas are intelligence sharing, border control, illicit financial flows, technical and legal cooperation, and permanent regional response mechanisms. A working group will translate these into a joint action plan.

When will the chancellors meet again?

The next ministerial meeting is scheduled in 180 days, likely in Buenos Aires. The technical working group will hold its first meeting in 90 days, with leadership rotating annually in alphabetical order.

Will more countries join?

Chile plans to present the agreement at the 46th General Assembly of the OAS and to invite additional American states to participate. Brazil, Colombia and Paraguay were not present at the Santiago signing.

Connected Coverage

For the broader political backdrop in Chile, see our piece on the Chile state of the nation preview. Also read our analysis of the Peruvian segunda vuelta market read and our coverage of Venezuela's oil reopening.

The Rio Times - Friday, May 29, 2026 - 03:00 BRT - By Sofia Gabriela Martinez