Santo Domingo.– President Luis Abinader is currently receiving the Secretary of Defense of the United States, Pete Hegseth, in a meeting aimed at strengthening bilateral cooperation in the fight against drug trafficking and expanding joint regional security actions.
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The United States Secretary of Defense was received at the Government House by the ministers of the Presidency, José Ignacio Paliza; of Defense, Lieutenant General Carlos Antonio Fernández Onofre and his wife, Varinnia Durán de Fernández and the Director of State Ceremonial and Protocol, Ambassador Francisco José Cantizano Nadal. Subsequently, he was taken to the White Hall, where he met privately with President Abinader, in a meeting that marks a decisive step in the joint agenda that both countries have been developing in recent years, based on the United States’ confidence in the progress made by the Dominican Republic in regional security. This visit also reaffirms the trust placed by the United States in the Dominican Republic, reflected in its support for the nomination of Dominican Leandro Villanueva as director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), a position that would be held by a national for the first time. The president has reiterated on several occasions that cooperation with the United States is fundamental to strengthen the country’s capabilities against transnational criminal organizations. “This is a constant struggle, especially with the increase in cocaine production in several countries in the region,” he has stated. At the close of the meeting, President Abinader and the U.S. Secretary of Defense will offer details on the agreements and the steps to be taken within the joint agenda.
