Relationship dossier
Costa Rica
United Kingdom
Relationship assessment
Trade continuity provides a concrete foundation for Costa Rica–United Kingdom cooperation.
Costa Rica toward United Kingdom
+30Costa Rica participates in the trade continuity framework with the United Kingdom based on the EU–Central America Association Agreement, maintaining trade rules between the two countries after the UK left the EU.
United Kingdom toward Costa Rica
+30The United Kingdom negotiated and participates in a trade continuity framework with Costa Rica and other Central American parties, maintaining trade rules after the UK left the EU.
Overall relationship
+30The trade continuity framework is a durable cooperative feature of the relationship, preserving an established basis for trade after the UK’s departure from the EU. The breadth of other direct bilateral cooperation is unclear.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
Costa Rica and the United Kingdom participate in a trade continuity framework based on the EU–Central America Association Agreement. The agreement preserves trade rules between the UK and Central American parties, including Costa Rica, after the UK left the EU. This is a concrete basis for cooperation, though the scope of other direct bilateral initiatives and their implementation is unclear.
Key developments
The United Kingdom signed a trade continuity agreement with Central American parties, including Costa Rica, based on the EU–Central America Association Agreement.
The UK trade continuity agreement with Central America took effect, preserving trade arrangements with Costa Rica after the UK left the EU.
Major uncertainties
- The extent of direct bilateral cooperation beyond the trade framework is unclear.
- The scale and implementation of bilateral initiatives outside trade are uncertain.