SAN SALVADOR — President Nayib Bukele announced today the immediate deployment of Salvadoran special forces to Haiti, where armed gangs control large swaths of Port-au-Prince and have crippled essential services.
The move extends Bukele's "mano dura" strategy overseas. At home, the aggressive crackdown has resulted in over 70,000 arrests since 2022 and a dramatic drop in homicides, giving Bukele sky-high approval ratings.
The United States has pushed hard for international military support to stabilize Haiti. The U.S. Congress approved $300 million this year to support a multinational force, funds that could aid participating nations. Bukele's deployment aligns with those calls for intervention and signals El Salvador as a key regional player in Caribbean security.
The Salvadoran contingent is expected to arrive in Port-au-Prince within seven days. Their initial mission will focus on securing critical infrastructure and helping the Haitian government reassert control in key areas. The Haitian transitional presidential council is expected to issue an operational framework statement by the end of next week.
Bukele faces a risky calculation. The gangs are well-armed and deeply entrenched in urban areas. Haiti's population is wary of foreign intervention. And the cost—transport, equipment, personnel—is substantial, though El Salvador has not disclosed figures. Success could cement Bukele's image as a decisive leader solving problems beyond his borders. Failure could bog down his military in a foreign quagmire and expose the limits of his domestic security model.
