The President of Panama, José Raúl Mulino, confirmed during his weekly conference that the country will appeal the ruling issued by the World Trade Organization (WTO) in the framework of the arbitration under the Dispute Settlement mechanism between Panama and Costa Rica.
“The most certain thing is that we appeal to buy time, within the right that Panama has to do so. We will always respect international law; this is not to play alive, but to allow the negotiation process with Costa Rica to continue,” the president said.
Mulino acknowledged that the WTO ruling, favorable to Costa Rica, is a fact that Panama may eventually have to comply with, although he emphasized that alternatives are still being evaluated. “We are in talks with the Minister of Commerce and Industries to reach a final decision,” he added.
The ruling, issued on December 5, gave Costa Rica the right in a trade dispute that began due to the restrictions imposed by Panama on the import of various Costa Rican agricultural products, such as dairy, meat, pigs, poultry, turkey, fish food, pineapple, banana, banana and strawberries. The restrictions were justified in phytosanitary reasons related to agricultural health.
This dispute has generated tensions between both countries, and the appeal seeks to open a space for negotiations that allow the conflict to be resolved in a way that is favorable for Panama.
What Panama has to look at is how can Costa Rica possibly produce such things at a lower cost than Panama can produce such products. Panama as a lot of un-used farm land. Panama should become more competitive by becoming more efficient. The idea that Panama needs to import bananas just seems ridiculous.