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LATIN AMERICA ADVISOR

LATIN AMERICA ADVISOR

A daily publication Of the dialogue

September 18, 2025

Can a New ‘Gang-Suppression Force’ Stabilize Haiti?

The governments of the United States and Panama last month proposed a new “gang-suppression force” for Haiti, parts of which are overrun by gangs. Port-au-Prince is pictured. // File Photo: ChrisOvergaard via Adobe Stock.

Q

  • The U.S. and Panamanian governments on Aug. 28 submitted to the U.N. Security Council a draft proposal for a “gang-suppression force” that would include as many as 5,500 uniformed personnel in order to wrest control of Haiti back from the gangs that control much of the country. The proposal calls for several countries to donate funding and forces, and it comes just weeks before the Oct. 2 expiration of the U.N. mandate of the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support mission that is currently in Haiti. How likely is the Security Council to approve the proposed force, and should it? Which countries are most likely to provide the money and personnel that such a force would require? Are 5,500 new troops enough to effectively combat Haiti’s gangs?

A

Daniel P. Erikson, former U.S. deputy assistant secretary of defense and National Security Council senior director, and non-resident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council: “Deadlines have a way of concentrating attention and focus. Haiti and the international community face an important deadline on Oct. 2, when the current mandate of the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support mission (MSS) is due to expire. Despite its challenges, the MSS has made an important contribution to security in Haiti, as demonstrated by the fact that a provisional Haitian government remains in place and a collapse into total gang-led anarchy has been averted. However, Haiti has not yet turned the corner in its efforts to fight the gangs, and the achievements to date could be easily reversed. While details for the ‘gang-suppression force’ proposed by the United States and Panama remain sparse, this…”

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