The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship (, MREC) is the ministry in charge of the foreign policy of

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

, including the management of diplomatic missions around the world and their personnel. Its lead title holder is called the Chancellor () of the country, a position currently held since 8 May 2022 by

Arnoldo André Tinoco Arnoldo André Tinoco (born 10 January 1961) is a Costa Rican politician. He has been the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship since 8 May 2022. References {{DEFAULTSORT:André Tinoco, Arnoldo Living people Place of birth missing (liv ...

. There is a Vice Minister of Bilateral Affairs and International Cooperation (currently: Adriana Bolaños Argueta) and a Vice Minister for Multilateral Affairs (currently:

Christian Guillermet-Fernández A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words ''Christ'' and ''Chr ...

)

History

The office was first created on 9 April 1844 as the "Ministry of Government and Police, Internal and Foreign Affairs" with

José María Castro Madriz José María Castro Madriz (1 September 1818 – 4 April 1892) was a Costa Rican lawyer, academic, diplomat, and politician. He served twice as President of Costa Rica, from 1848 to 1849, and from 1866 to 1868. On both occasions he was prevented ...

at its helm. On 10 February 1847 it was reorganized as the "Ministry of Internal, Foreign Affairs, Government, Justice and Ecclesiastical Affairs". The then office of Ecclesiastical Affairs was in charge of the foreign affairs related to the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

, and today it refers to the "Worship" in the current name of the ministry. In 1920 the ministry moves to the current location, the Yellow House (), a building donated by

Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie ( , ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the History of the iron and steel industry in the United States, American steel industry in the late ...

. In 1948 it acquired its current name due to the reorganization of the Founding Junta of the Second Republic.

Functions

According to Law No. 3008 of 18 July 1962, the function of the Ministry is to collaborate with the

President of the Republic The President of the Republic is a title used for heads of state and/or heads of government in countries having republican form of government. Designation In most cases the president of a republic is elected, either: * by direct universal s ...

, under the direction of the Minister appointed for this purpose, in the systematized formulation of the country's foreign policy, in the orientation of its international relations and in the safeguarding of national sovereignty. It is the means by which the Republic of Costa Rica carries out all its negotiations with foreign governments and institutions. The Ministry has, among other objectives: * Coordinate internal interests, visions and needs and develop a comprehensive and articulated foreign policy. * Provide advice to the President of the Republic and other institutions of the Executive branch of the government on the conduct of international relations, in order to successfully handle representation and external negotiations at the economic, political, legal and technical assistance levels. * Guarantee the satisfaction of the fundamental needs of existence, security and prosperity of the Republic of Costa Rica and its nationals. * Effectively protect the interests of the country and its nationals abroad. * Promote and represent the interests of the Republic of Costa Rica. * Promote the country in various instances of the international arena, in order to encourage commercial exchange, and attract investment, tourism and international cooperation. * Maintain the best image of Costa Rica at the international level, seeking to defend the principles of international law and international treaties in force in the country.

References

{{authority control *Foreign Affairs and Worship Foreign relations of Costa Rica

1844 establishments in Costa Rica Government agencies established in the 1840s Political organizations established in 1844

Foreign affairs ''Foreign Affairs'' is an American magazine of international relations and foreign policy of the United States, U.S. foreign policy published by the Council on Foreign Relations, a nonprofit organization, nonprofit, nonpartisan, membership or ...

History

Functions

See also

References