Honduras will maintain its extradition agreement with the United States, President Xiomara Castro announced Tuesday, just days before the treaty was due to expire. The treaty, which has played a key role in extraditing suspected drug smugglers, will continue in place “with the necessary safeguards,” Castro said in a post on social media platform X.
The about-face is a major change from Honduras previous position. In August, the administration had announced that it would cancel the treaty due to US “interference” and alleging a conspiracy against Castro’s government and military leadership. Then, Castro asserted that the pact could be abused to orchestrate a coup against her government.
The diplomatic row intensified when US Ambassador Laura Dogu condemned a meeting between Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez and the highest Honduran authorities, as Washington blames the latter for aiding drug trafficking. The scandal exacerbated opposition allegations of Castro’s termination of the treaty being a clever move to cover her government, as well as relatives, against possible legal fallout.
Castro’s ex-President husband, Manuel Zelaya, was overthrown in a 2009 military coup supported by right-wing politicians and business elites. Opponents of Castro claimed that his move to cancel the treaty would undermine anti-narcotics efforts and shield high-profile drug-trafficking figures.
The extradition accord has been vital to US actions against dismantling what officials say was a Honduran “narco-state” flourishing under the presidency of Juan Orlando Hernandez, 2014-2022. About 50 Hondurans who face charges of trafficking in drugs were extradited in the last ten years, with Hernández among them. The latter was recently sentenced to 45 years imprisonment in June at New York.
By upholding the treaty, Honduras hopes to reconcile diplomatic ties with the US while internalizing issues related to sovereignty and security.
