President Juan Manuel Santos from Colombia visited Costa Rica to meet with President Laura Chinchilla in order to launch the initial negotiations  for a Free Trade Agreement between these two nations. The meeting took place this past Friday in San Jose after Santos arrived at the Airport at approximately 10:15 a.m. local time.

According to ElPais.cr, Chinchilla expressed that Colombian government shares Costa Rica’s “vision of development and integration into the world”. She wishes this first meeting will “provide the basis to form a deep and lasting business partnership”

For Costa Rica, this seems to be a strategic move. A free trade agreement with Colombia can signify a free pass to become a part of the Alliance of the Pacific, a trade organization composed of Colombia, Mexico, Chile and Peru.

Costa Rican Foreign Trade Ministry revealed that in 2011, Costa Rica exported $48 million dollars – a growth of 12.1% and imported $455 million dollars from Colombia. The annual trade has grown from $100 million to $500 million in the last ten years between both countries, as president Santos noted Friday morning while addressing the press on this short visit.

Colombian migration to Costa Rica is the second highest in the country, surpassed only by Nicaragua: out of close to 400 thousand foreigners living in the country, Colombians represent 4.3 percent according to the 2011 census.

Both governments have revealed their intentions to sum forces in order to tackle impending issues such as drug trafficking and organized crime. Geographically, Costa Rica represents an ideal bridge for drug cartels to transport drugs between Colombia, the biggest cocaine manufacturer worldwide, and the United States, the biggest consumer market for this drug.

Presidents Santos and Chinchilla will also work on immigration by strengthening their control mechanisms for example, one of the improvements will include making real-time data accessible for Costa Rican immigration checkpoints, yet eliminating the Costa Rican visa requirements for Colombian citizens.

Both Presidents expressed their willingness to work on the protection of marine resources, specifically teaming up to fight against shark finning which affects borders for both countries on the Pacific and the Atlantic Ocean.

Colombia’s Minister of Commerce, Trade and Tourism, Sergio Diaz-Granados revealed that the country is also working on Free Trade Agreements with other nations such as South Korea, Venezuela and the European Union.

Although there is opposing views from the Industrial and Business sectors on both ends, the free trade agreement should be finalized by the end of this year in hopes that it will take effect in the first half of 2013.