Relations between Costa Rica and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

have been historically close; nevertheless there were instances in history where the US and Costa Rica disagreed. One such example might be the case of Freebooter William Walker. Nevertheless, considering that Costa Rica generally supports the U.S. in international fora, especially in the areas of

democracy Democracy (From grc, δημοκρατία, dēmokratía, ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which people, the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation ("direct democracy"), or to choo ...

and

human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...

, modern day relations are very strong. According to the 2012 U.S. Global Leadership Report, 41% of

Costa Ricans Costa Ricans ( es, Costarricenses), also called Ticos, are the citizens of Costa Rica, a multiethnic, Spanish-speaking nation in Central America. Costa Ricans are predominantly Castizos, other ethnic groups people of Indigenous, European, Africa ...

approve of U.S. leadership, while 15% disapproving and 44% uncertain.

History

Costa Rica and The United States have maintained formal diplomatic relations since 1851. The United States is Costa Rica's most important trading partner. The two countries share growing concerns for the environment and want to preserve Costa Rica's tropical resources and prevent environmental degradation. In 2007, the United States reduced Costa Rica's debt in exchange for protection and conservation of Costa Rican forests through a debt for nature swap under the auspices of the Tropical Forest Conservation Act. This is the largest such agreement of its kind to date. This deal between both governments generated 50 million dollars which were devoted to conservation projects. Through provision of more than $100 million in assistance, the

U.S. Agency for International Development The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government that is primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance. With a budget of over $27 ...

(USAID) supported Costa Rican efforts to stabilize its economy and broaden and accelerate economic growth through policy reforms and trade liberalization. Assistance initiatives in the 1990s concentrated on democratic policies, modernizing the administration of

justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...

, and sustainable development. Once the country had graduated from most forms of U.S. assistance, the USAID Mission in Costa Rica closed in 1996. However, USAID completed a $9 million project in 2000–01 to support refugees of

Hurricane Mitch Hurricane Mitch is the second-deadliest Atlantic hurricane on record, causing over 11,000 fatalities in Central America in 1998, including approximately 7,000 in Honduras and 3,800 in Nicaragua due to cataclysmic flooding from the slow motion ...

residing in Costa Rica. Relations between the two countries took a dip in the 1980s when the Reagan administration used Costa Rican territory to attack the Sandinista government of Costa Rica's northern neighbor

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the countr ...

against the wishes of the Costa Rican government. The administration of Costa Rican President Oscar Arias prohibited the handful of former U.S. officials from entering Costa Rica after a congressional commission found that their actions to resupply the contra rebels led to drug trafficking by contra pilots. The Bush Administration stopped international financial organization loans to the government of Costa Rica after Arias expropriated land on which a secret mile-long airstrip was built. More than 3,370

Peace Corps The Peace Corps is an independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to provide international development assistance. It was established in March 1961 by an executive order of President John F ...

volunteers have served in Costa Rica since the program was established in 1963. Currently, 128 volunteers serve there. Volunteers work in the areas of youth development, community development, business and English education. They are trained and work in Spanish. As reported by the National Census of Costa Rica of 2011, 4.1% more American citizens live in Costa Rica with regards to the number calculated in 2000. There are 15,898 American citizens living in Costa Rica, as found by the census, compared to the 9,511 that lived in that nation in the year 2000. During the first trimester of 2011, 55% of people that visited Costa Rica came from the United States.

U.S.-Costa Rica Counter-narcotics Cooperation Agreement

In 1999 the U.S.-Costa Rica Counter-narcotics Cooperation Agreement, entered into force. The agreement facilitates cooperation between the Coast Guard of Costa Rica and the

U.S. Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mul ...

regarding drug trafficking and other illegal activity. Bilateral Costa Rican

law enforcement Law enforcement is the activity of some members of government who act in an organized manner to enforce the law by discovering, deterring, rehabilitating, or punishing people who violate the rules Rule or ruling may refer to: Education ...

cooperation, particularly against drug trafficking, has been successful. However, there was an internal dispute (within Costa Rica) regarding the entrance of United States naval forces as support for U.S. Coast Guard activities. While Costa Rica is concerned about the threat of illegal drug-related activities, it has a tradition of demilitarization and peaceful conflict resolution. Costa Rican Congressman Luis Fishman stated his concern saying that "''This gives a blank check to American troops''", while opposition legislator Juan Carlos Mendoza added, "''The type of armament leads one to believe that these operations are more military in character, rather than for combating drug trafficking''". There was also an online petition against the entry of U.S. naval vessels, which received over 4,200 signatures, and the mobilization of protestors.

U.S. Embassy in San José, Costa Rica

The U.S. Embassy in Costa Rica is in San José. The embassy's office building was built in 1980 and designed by architect Robert Marquis. The current Ambassador is

Cynthia Telles Cynthia Ann Telles is an American academic and psychologist who currently serves as the US Ambassador to Costa Rica. She is a clinical professor in the UCLA Department of Psychiatry at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and serves on t ...

Centro Cultural Costarricense Norteamericano

The Centro Cultural Costarricense Norteamericano is a non-profit Costa-Rican association established in 1945 and declared '' 'public interest' '' by the Costa-Rican government in 1993. This association's stated mission is "''to lead in innovative ways of teaching languages and the promotion of inter-cultural experiences''," more precisely with regards to the United States. It is partnered with the Embassy of the United States in San José.

Costa Rican Embassy in Washington D.C.

The Costa Rican Embassy to the United States is located in Washington D.C. The Costa Rican ambassador is Dr. Fernando Llorca Castro.

Education

The American International School of Costa Rica serves American families in Costa Rica.

References

External links

History of Costa Rica - U.S. relations
{{DEFAULTSORT:Costa Rica-United States relations Bilateral relations of the United States