They spend hundreds of millions on the UEI special forces that are somehow not considered military even though they are structured like a military. This is basically their defense from Nicaragua and narcos which is really all they have to worry about. They have the Fuerza Publica which handles broader security and law enforcement. They are also under UN protection and both the US and China have interests there. It's not like they don't spend any money on defense.

> Fuerza Publica which handles broader security and law enforcement

See that's a force that has a daily purpose unlike a standing Army that waits for battle.

The 70-something strong UEI is something most countries have since the 70s to fight terrorism, like Germany's GSG9. Again, not a standing army to fight another army.

A standing army on the other hand is a very large and very powerful tool, either to fight outside armies or to impose internal repression. The whole point about abolishing the military was to take this force out of the larger equation. The UEI will never be a threat to Costa Rica itself, a standing army would be.

In my native Germany you can consider a chunk of the Bundeswehr to have a right-wing/extremist mindset (E.g. Franco A.) and I wouldn't trust it much in a situation like say a Green-party leader becoming Bundeskanzler.