Costa Rica, Israel ink trade deal on agriculture, industrial goods
Costa Rica and Israel have finalized a free trade agreement this week, removing over 90% of tariffs between the two nations, primarily on agricultural and industrial products.
The deal also is expected to improve prospects for trade in services, technology and specialized investment, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.
Costa Rica's Ministry of Foreign Trade said the pact with Israel -- which it described as a leader in innovation, cybersecurity, clean technologies, agrotechnology, digital services and semiconductors -- creates a favorable framework for expanding trade, attracting capital and strengthening bilateral production chains.
The agreement must be ratified by Costa Rica's Legislative Assembly, a process expected to be contentious due to criticism from pro-Palestinian groups calling for a freeze on ties with Israel.
Activist groups collected about 12,000 signatures from Costa Ricans and delivered them to the government in November, urging it to halt the agreement on the grounds that Costa Rica would become "complicit" in genocide, local outlet Semanario Universidad reported.
Although current trade between the two countries -- estimated at about $60 million -- represents only a small share of each nation's total exports, Costa Rican business groups welcomed the agreement, saying it will allow the country to strengthen specific niches where it has a competitive advantage or needs key inputs.
"In the current context, it is very important to diversify the sources of investment and the destinations of our products, particularly in a high-potential market such as the Middle East," Ronald Lachner, president of the Association of Free Zone Companies of Costa Rica, told El Observador.
Costa Rican Foreign Trade Minister Manuel Tovar said the agreement "represents a strategic opportunity to position Costa Rica as a competitive supplier in high-technology sectors, quality agribusiness and specialized services."
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