Operation Nexo Mobilizes Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina at the Triple Frontier

Security forces from Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina carried out a major simultaneous operation on Thursday afternoon (17) in the Triple Frontier region, dubbed Operation Nexo. The action covered Foz do Iguaçu (Brazil), Ciudad del Este (Paraguay) and Puerto Iguazú (Argentina), targeting transnational crimes such as drug trafficking, arms trafficking and smuggling.

How the operation worked

Coordinated by the Tripartite Command, the operation deployed teams at the region’s three customs posts, at the Friendship Bridge, the Tancredo Neves Bridge, Foz International Airport, along BR-277, and at immigration and inspection checkpoints. Sniffer dogs, mobile X-ray equipment and drones were used to inspect passenger vehicles, buses and cargo on roads leading to the bridges and unofficial border crossings.

Teams also carried out document checks and cross-referenced integrated databases from the three countries, aiming to identify outstanding arrest warrants and other matters of police interest. Brazil’s Federal Police said the effort targeted crimes that use the border as part of their route or operating strategy — a persistent challenge in the region, given how quickly people can move between the three countries.

Armed forces also step up border patrols

Operation Nexo took place the same week Brazil’s Ministry of Defense activated Operation Ágata Arco Sul-Sudeste 2026, a recurring effort that strengthens patrols along highways and rivers in the border areas of Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul states. In Foz do Iguaçu, Army, Navy and Air Force teams set up checkpoints on roads leading to the border and stepped up patrols on the Iguaçu and Paraná rivers, working alongside the Federal Police, Federal Highway Police, Federal Revenue Service and the military police of the three southern states.