Prensa Latina | 2 March 2011

Wikileaks reveals US pressure to FTA with Costa Rica

San Jose, Mar 2.— The U.S. Embassy in San Jose put pressure to encourage the adoption of a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the U.S. and Costa Rica, according to Wikileaks cables released today by the newspaper La Nación.

The FTA caused the rejection of many sectors of the Costa Rican population due to the asymmetries between the economies of both countries and also because it allowed the privatization of state sectors such as insurance and telecommunications.

Popular rejection forced the president to submit the issue to a referendum on October 7, 2007, in which the FTA was approved in a narrow margin.

As revealed by Wikileaks, "the United States is attributed part of the Yes victory in the national referendum that approved the FTA."

After the consultation and during the complex legislative debate of the treaty’s implementation laws, Costa Rican President received a message of encouragement from the United States regarding the adoption of the legislation, said La Nación.

Wikileaks information proves U.S. interference, which was already evident at the time of discussion of the treaty, said Otton Solis, leader of the Citizens Action Party, one of the leading opponents to the FTA. (Prensa Latina).

(Easy access to the wikileaks cables on CAFTA, the US and Costa Rica here)