Ecuador has become the third largest exporter of drugs in the world, where three of the largest international criminal organizations, specialized in the trafficking of narcotics, carry out criminal activities. 

Among the three big drug gangs is also the Albanian one: 

The first is the gang called "Sinaloa Cartel", which has been operating in Ecuador since 2009. 

The second is the "Re Jalisco" generation cartel. 

Third comes the Albanian mafia, which according to foreign media started its criminal activity in Ecuador in 2014, the Spanish media report. 

However, this gang cooperates with the so-called "R7" mafia, and all these groups finance and control the cocaine transportation routes by air and sea. 

Based on Ecuadorian authorities' information, the gangs fight to the death to control the territory and transport the drugs. 

Nevertheless, the Jalisco and Sinaloa cartels and the Albanian mafia buy cocaine from Colombian gangs and then move it across the northern border, through Esmeralda. 

Most shipments from these provinces are transported to the US and Europe.