New Delhi, May 25 -- Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa on Sunday used his State of the Union address to tout his government's U.S.-backed crime-fighting strategies as well as improvements of some economic indicators.

Addressing the National Assembly in the capital, Quito, Noboa cited the extradition of a dozen crime bosses to the United States and the seizure of almost 300 tons of drugs as examples of what he described as a decisive and effective approach to combat organized crime, the main concern of Ecuadorians throughout this decade.

"We will seek them out, find them and extradite them," Noboa said of wanted criminals after he asserted that the South American country cannot develop "if families live in fear" due to organized crime. ...