Overflights turn Galapagos into airstrip for US military
by Pablo Jaramillo Viteri and Chris Kraul, Los Angeles Times
Jun 18, 2019
3 minutes
QUITO, Ecuador - Ecuador's defense minister on Monday defended his country's decision to allow U.S. anti-drug overflights to land in the environmentally sensitive Galapagos Islands, saying the planes will use the landing strips "no more than three days (per month) ... in situations of emergency or refueling."
Critics, however, including former President Rafael Correa, have assailed the plan as an assault on Ecuador's sovereignty, as well as on the islands' unique and fragile environment.
"No minister,
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