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Private military company

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A private military company (PMC) provides specialised expertise or services of a military nature, sometimes called or classified as mercenary ("soldiers for hire").[1] Such companies are equally known as Private Security Contractors (PSCs), Private Military Corporations, Private Military Firms, Military Service Providers, and generally as the Private Military Industry.

The services and expertise cover those typically found in governmental military or police forces, but most often on a smaller scale. While PMCs often provide services to train or supplement official armed forces in service of governments, but they are also employed by private firms. PMCs tend to be concentrated in areas of low intensity conflict, where deploying traditional armed forces might be too politically, diplomatically, or economically risky.[citation needed] However, under the Geneva Convention, contractors who use offensive force in a war zone could be considered unlawful combatants.[2]

Private military companies supply bodyguards for the Afghan president, build detention camps at Guantanamo Bay, and pilot armed reconnaissance planes and helicopter gunships to destroy coca crops in Colombia.[citation needed] They operate the intelligence and communications systems at the United States Northern Command in Colorado, which is responsible for coordinating a response to any attack on the United States.[citation needed] And licensed by the State Department, they are contracting with foreign governments, training soldiers and reorganizing militaries in Nigeria, Bulgaria, Taiwan, and Equatorial Guinea.[citation needed] The PMC industry is now worth over $100 billion a year. [3]

General terms

PMCs are also known as security contractors, although this term usually refers to individuals employed or contracted by PMCs. Services are mainly rendered for other business corporations, international and non-governmental organizations, and state forces.

Private military companies are sometimes grouped into the general category of defense contractors. However, most defense contractors supply specialized hardware and perhaps also personnel to support and service that hardware, whereas PMCs supply personnel with specialized operational and tactical skills, which often include combat experience.

The 1949 Third Geneva Convention (GCIII) does not recognize the difference between defense contractors and PMCs; it defines a category called supply contractors. If the supply contractor has been issued with a valid identity card from the armed forces which they accompany, they are entitled to be treated as prisoners of war upon capture (GCIII Article 4.1.4). If, however, the contractor engages in combat, he/she can be classified as a mercenary by the captors under the 1977 Protocol I Additional to the Geneva Conventions (Protocol I) Article 47.c, unless falling under an exemption to this clause in Article 47. If captured contractors are found to be mercenaries, they are unlawful combatants and lose the right to prisoner of war status. Protocol I was not ratified by the United States because, among other issues, it does not require "freedom Fighters" to obey the convention in order to be granted its protections.

United States

The United States State Department employs several companies to provide support in danger zones that would be difficult for conventional U.S. forces. The military employs many of them as guards to extremely high ranking U.S. government officials in hot spots all around the world. The term most often refers to the two dozen U.S. firms that provide services for the Pentagon and indirectly assist in overseas theaters of operation. Some contractors have served in advisory roles that help train local militaries to fight more effectively instead of intervening directly. Much of the peacekeeper training the United States provides to African militaries is done by private firms, and with the increasing absence of Western military support to international peace operations, the private sector is commonly utilized to provide services to peace and stability operations from Haiti to Darfur.

The Center for Public Integrity reported that since 1994, the Defense Department entered into 3,601 contracts worth $300 billion with 12 U.S. based PMCs. Some view this as an inevitable cost cutting measure and responsible privatization of critical aspects of a military. However, many feel this is a troubling trend, since these private companies are not directly accountable to a legislative body and may cost more than providing the same functions within the military. 17 of the nation's leading private military firms have contributed $12.4 million in congressional and presidential campaigns since 1999.[3]

Another issue of concern has been the recent high-profile operation of various PMCs within the United States, specifically during the initial response after Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. Supporters are quick to point out the stabilizing influence that the operators of these companies put into place in the first few days provided, whereas detractors have levied claims of abuse and unlawful activities. Neither side has provided much proof to back their claims, however, beyond anecdotal evidence.

Domestic operations are generally under the auspice of state or federal agencies such as the Department of Energy or the Department of Homeland Security rather than the Department of Defense. Driven by increasingly greater fears of domestic terror attacks and civil unrest and disruption in the wake of disasters, more conventional security companies are moving into operations arenas that would fall within the definition of a PMC.

U.S. administration policy on PMCs

On 5 December 2005, U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld held a lecture dubbed "The Future of Iraq" at Johns Hopkins Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies.[4] During a Q&A session afterwards he was asked a question by graduate student Kate Bateman regarding PMCs.

Bateman: "There are currently thousands of private military contractors in Iraq and you were just speaking of rules of engagement in regards to Iraqi personnel and US personnel. Could you speak to, since the private contractors are operating outside the Uniform Code of Military Justice, could you speak to what law or rules of engagement do govern their behaviour and whether there has been any study showing that it is cost-effective to have them in Iraq rather than US military personnel. Thank you."

Rumsfeld: "Thank you. It is clearly cost-effective to have contractors for a variety of things that military people need not do and that for whatever reason other civilian government people cannot be deployed to do. There are a lot of contractors. A growing number. They come from our country - but they come from all countries; and indeed sometimes the contracts are from our country, or another country, and they employ people from totally different countries; including Iraqis and people from neighbouring nations. And there are a lot of them and it's a growing number. And of course we've got to begin with the fact that, as you point out, they're not subject to the uniform code of military justice; we understand that. There are laws that govern the behaviour of Americans in that country - the Department of Justice oversees that. The [long hesitation] there is an issue that is current as to the extent to which they can or cannot carry weapons and that's an issue. It's also an issue of course with the Iraqis but, if you think about it, Iraq is a sovereign country, they have their laws and they're going to govern. The UN resolution and the Iraqi laws, as well as US procedures and laws, govern behaviour in that country depending on who the individual is and what he's doing, but I'm personally of the view that there are a lot of things that can be done on a short time basis by contractors that advantage the United States, and advantage other countries who also hire contractors. Any idea that we shouldn't have them I think would be unwise."

New U.S. law on PMCs

According to the FY2007 Defense Budget appropriation bill, the text of the UCMJ has been amended to allow for prosecution of military contractors who are deployed in a "declared war or a contingency operation."

"SEC. 552. CLARIFICATION OF APPLICATION OF UNIFORM CODE OF MILITARY JUSTICE DURING A TIME OF WAR.

Paragraph (10) of section 802(a) of title 10, United States Code (article 2(a) of the Uniform Code of Military Justice), is amended by striking `war' and inserting `declared war or a contingency operation'."

[5][6]

Farah Stockman of the Boston Globe, (7 January 2007) writes: "Previously, the code applied to "persons serving with or accompanying an armed force in the field" only during a war, which US courts interpreted to mean a war declared by Congress. No such declaration was made in the Iraq conflict. Now, Congress has amended the code to apply to persons accompanying an armed force during a "declared war or contingency operation."

But the provision might also have unintended consequences, if the military chooses to use its new power to court-martial civilians. For instance, the language in the law is so broad that it can be interpreted as saying that embedded journalists and contract employees from foreign countries would also be liable under the military code. Other punishable offenses under the code include disobeying an order, disrespecting an officer, and possession of pornography in a combat zone."[7]

"Shadow Company" is a documentary about the history, origins and current issues with the existance of PMCs - it traces the history long before the Iraq conflict and well into the international scope. The film covers the Executive Outcomes story and also delves into how this phenomenon in warfare has affected the entertainment and gaming industries. It is the only film that is endorsed by both Amnesty Int and employees of Blackwater as a fair and balanced portrayal of the subject matter. The film's creator/director, Nick Bicanic, was invited to testify in Senate on Sept. 21, 2007 on the subject of PMCs in relation to the incident in Iraq involving Blackwater.

The International Peace Operations Association

The International Peace Operations Association (IPOA) is U.S. trade organisation for private military companies, with membership including Blackwater USA, Defensecurity [1], ArmorGroup International PLC, Pacific Architects and Engineers, Hart Security and MPRI. The IPOA was founded by former academic Doug Brooks in April 2001 and now has its own in-house journal, The Journal of International Peace Operations.[8] Blackwater USA withdrew from in IPOA October 2007. [9]

Recruitment

In light of the above issues, some commentators have argued that there has been a recent exodus from many special forces across the globe towards these private military corporations. The British Special Air Service[10][11], the American Special Forces[12] and the Canadian Joint Task Force 2[13] have allegedly been severely affected. Military staff are lured by the fact that entry level positions with the various companies can pay up to US$100,000 a year in some instances, or as high as US$1000 an hour (most are deployed for a year and a half), which is 2-3 times more than what an average special forces soldier is paid. However, this conventional wisdom has been disputed especially in the United States where Government Accountability Office (GAO) research has detected no noticeable exodus.[citation needed]

PMC activities in Iraq

Currently in Iraq there are thought to be at least 100,000 contractors working directly for the United States Department of Defense which is a tenfold increase in the use of private contractors for military operations since the Persian Gulf War, just over a decade earlier.[14] The prevelance of PMCs has led to the foundation of trade group the Private Security Company Association of Iraq. In Iraq, the issue of accountability, especially in the case of contractors carrying weapons is a sensitive one. Iraqi laws do not hold over contractors. Just before leaving office as head of the Coalition Provisional Authority, Paul Bremer signed Coalition Provisional Authority Order 17 where it is stated that:

Contractors shall not be subject to Iraqi laws or regulations in matters relating to the

terms and conditions of their Contracts, including licensing and registering employees, businesses and corporations; provided, however, that Contractors shall comply with such applicable licensing and registration laws and regulations if engaging in business or transactions in Iraq other than Contracts. Notwithstanding any provisions in this Order, Private Security Companies and their employees operating in Iraq must comply with all CPA Orders, Regulations, Memoranda, and any implementing instructions or regulations governing the existence and activities of Private Security Companies in Iraq, including registration and licensing of

weapons and firearms.[15]

PMCs supply essential support to U.S. military bases throughout the Persian Gulf, from operating mess halls to providing security. They supply armed guards at a U.S. Army base in Qatar, and they use live ammunition to train soldiers at Camp Doha in Kuwait. They maintain an array of weapons systems vital to an invasion of Iraq, including the B-2 bomber, F-117 stealth fighter, Apache helicopter, KC-10 refueling tanker, U-2 reconnaissance plane, and the unmanned Global Hawk reconnaissance unit. They also provide bodyguards for VIPs, guard installations, and escort supply convoys from Kuwait. All these resources are called upon constantly due to the war in Iraq.[3]

Events involving PMCs in Iraq

  • Employees of private military company CACI were involved in the Iraq Abu Ghraib prison scandal in 2003, and 2004.
  • On March 31, 2004, four American private contractors belonging to the company Blackwater USA were killed by citizens of Fallujah as they drove through the town, 3 days after US troops had killed 17 Iraqis demonstrating outside a primary school. They were dragged from their car in one of the most violent attacks on U.S. citizens in the conflict. Following the attack, an angry mob mutilated and burned the bodies, dragging them through the streets before they were hung on a bridge. (See also: 31 March 2004 Fallujah ambush, Operation Vigilant Resolve)
  • On March 28, 2005, 16 American contractors and three Iraqi aides from Zapata Engineering, under contract to the US Army Corps of Engineers to manage an ammunition storage depot, were detained following two incidents in which they allegedly fired upon U.S. Marine checkpoint. While later released, the civilian contractors have levied complaints of mistreatment against the Marines who detained them.
  • On June 5, 2005, colonel Theodore S. Westhusing committed suicide, after writing a report exonerating US Investigations Services of allegations of fraud, waste and abuse he received in an anonymous letter in May.
  • On October 27, 2005, a "trophy" video, complete with post-production Elvis music, appearing to show private military contractors in Baghdad shooting Iraqi civilians sparked two investigations after it was posted on the Internet. [16][17][18] The video has been linked unofficially to Aegis Defence Services. According to the posters, the man who is seen shooting vehicles on this video in Iraq was a South African employee of Aegis Victory team named Danny Heydenreycher. He served in the British military for six years. After the incident the regional director for Victory ROC tried to fire Heydenreycher, but the team threatened to resign if he did. As of December 2005, Aegis is conducting a formal inquiry into the issue, although some concerns on its impartiality have been raised.
  • On September 17, 2007, the Iraqi government announced that it was revoking the license of the American security firm Blackwater USA over the firm's involvement in the deaths of eight civilians in a firefight that followed a car bomb explosion near a State Department motorcade. Blackwater is currently one of the most high-profile firms operating in Iraq, with around 1,000 employees as well as a fleet of helicopters in the country. Whether the group may be legally prosecuted is still a matter of debate. [19]

Two days before he left Iraq, L. Paul Bremer signed "Order 17"[20] giving all Americans associated with the CPA and the American government immunity from Iraqi law.[21]. A July 2007 report from the American Congressional Research Service indicates that the Iraqi government still has no authority over private security firms contracted by the U.S. government.[22]

PMC activities elsewhere

  • In 1999, an episode with DynCorp in Bosnia was particularly embarrassing for the U.S. military. A Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) lawsuit was filed against DynCorp employees stationed in Bosnia, which claimed: "employees and supervisors from DynCorp were engaging in perverse, illegal and inhumane behavior and were illegally purchasing women, weapons, forged passports and participating in other immoral acts."
  • 2001, Antonio Marrapese [2] CEO Defensecurity [3], been involved in the Iran-Contra scandal
  • On April 5, 2005, Jamie Smith, CEO of SCG International Risk announced the expansion of services from the traditional roles of PMCs of protection and intelligence to military aviation support. SCG International Air would provide air support, medevac (medical evacuation), rotary and fixed-wing transportation, heavy-lift cargo, armed escort and executive air travel to "any location on earth." This marks a unique addition and expansion of services to rival the capabilities of some country's armies and air forces.
  • On March 27, 2006, J. Cofer Black, vice chairman of Blackwater USA announced to attendees of a special operations exhibition in Jordan that his company could now provide a brigade-size force for low intensity conflicts. According to Black, "There is clear potential to conduct security operations at a fraction of the cost of NATO operations".[23]
  • In mid-May 2006, police in the Democratic Republic of the Congo arrested 32 alleged mercenaries of different nationalities; 19 South Africans, 10 Nigerians and three Americans. Half of them worked for a South African company named Omega Security Solutions and the Americans for AQMI Strategy Corp. The men were accused of plotting to overthrow the government but charges weren't pressed. The men were deported to their home countries.[24][25]

List of PMCs

U.S. companies

Name HQ Portfolio Details
(3D Global Solutions)[26]: Carmel, IN  United Arab Emirates,  Honduras,  Iraq
Aedion N/A N/A
Alpha Point Security Twain Harte, California most to individual clients (Website) Armed Security, UAV-Intelligence (ISR) and Consulting... defense against piracy, terrorists and rebels.
AirScan Titusville, FL US Department of Defense, US Air Force, NASA

US Forest Service, National Test Pilot School, National Response Corporation, US Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Reclamation, Arkansas, Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, Missouri, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia, Maximum Protective Services, ECOPETROL: the national oil company of Colombia, Occidental Petroleum Corporation, Cabinda Gulf Oil Company (Angola), SONANGOL: national oil company of Angola || airborne surveillance and security

AQMI Strategy Corp
Blackwater USA (Website) Moyock, NC Iraq
Braddock Dunn & McDonald (BDM) long-established defense contractor purchased in mid-1990s by TRW and onsold to Northrop Grumman in December 2002
C3 Defense, Inc. (Website)
CACI - California Analysis Center, Incorporated Arlington, VA
Critical Intervention Services Clearwater, FL paramilitary Security Agency
Custer Battles McLean, Virginia
Berodt Dynamics Iowa Defence contractor
Defensecurity (Website) Defense Security Training Service Corporation North Miami Beach, FL
Defion Internacional, (Website)
DynCorp, (Website) Falls Church, VA
Eastern Cross Iraq, Middle East
Elite Security Corps
ITT Corporation White Plains, NY
ISCS International
International Security Instructors, (Website) River Edge, NJ
Kellogg Brown and Root Houston, TX Formerly a Division of Halliburton
Landmine Sourcing - Global PMC Recruiters (Website)
Military Professional Resources Inc. (MPRI) (Website) Alexandria, VA
ManTech International Corporation
Northbridge Services Group Turkmenstan, Somalia, Nigeria
Northrop Grumman Los Angeles, CA
Overwatch Protection Solutions International, (Website)
Paratus World Wide Protection, (Website) Charlotte, NC Iraq
Ronin Worldwide Executive Protection, LLC, (Website) Dearborn, MI
Raytheon Cambridge, MA
SCG International Risk (Website) Fairfax, VA
Sharp End International (Website) who use mainly Australian and New Zealand ex-special forces instructors
SkyLink USA, affiliated with SkyLink Aviation [27] Herndon, VA
SOS Temps, Inc founded by former Navy Seal Richard Marcinko.
Spartan Consulting Group (Website)3 Los Angeles, CA
Tactical Response Services Tampa, FL paramilitary Security Agency
Titan Corporation San Diego, CA Benin
Top Cat Marine Security (Website) Malverne, NY marine security
Triple Canopy, Inc. (Website) Herndon, Virginia South America, Iraq
Vinnell Corporation Fairfax, Virginia Turkey, Saudi Arabia
VIP Investigations & Protective Services Inc. (Website)
EUBSA BV Inc. STOP units - Special Tactics and OPerations (Website) Beaverton, Oregon
Pathfinder Security Services Casper, Wyoming, USA oil, gas and mining sector; mainly in the US

U.K. companies

Others

Video games

  • In the video games Soldier of Fortune and Soldier of Fortune II: Double Helix by Raven Software, the player takes the role of John Mullins, a mercenary in employment with a PMC known simply as "The Shop".
  • In the video game Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction the player plays as a mercenary working for a PMC known as "Executive Operations".
  • In the video game Army of Two, the player characters, Tyson Rios and Elliot Salem, work for a PMC called the Security & Strategy Corporation (SSC).
  • In the Metal Gear series of video games, most notably the upcoming Metal Gear Solid 4, the military action that is in place in the game is run mostly by PMC soldiers.
  • In the video game Haze, the player plays as a mercenary, Shane Carpenter, working for a PMC owned by "Mantel Global Industries", which has apparently replaced both the United Nations and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
  • In the Tom Clancy video game series Splinter Cell, a character named Douglas Shetland was CEO and founder of a PMC named Displace International. Also in the multiplayer modes of Splinter Cell, there is another PMC named ARGUS, which constantly become contracted to terrorists.
  • In the Jagged Alliance series of turn-based, squad-level strategy video games, the player commands squads of mercenaries hired from a fictional PMC-like union known as the Association of International Mercenaries.

Film and television

  • In the CBS show The Unit, the protagonist, Jonas Blane, is urged by his wife, Molly, to join a PMC. Molly Blane also freelances for a PMC.
  • In an episode of the TV series Kidnapped, aired on October 21 2006, lead character Lucian Knapp posed as a job applicant to a PMC to gain access to its internal computer system. When discovered by the PMC's security, they detained him and attempted to transport him as a prisoner to Dubai, stating he now had "no future". In the same episode, a Federal Bureau of Investigation agent described PMCs as the kind of organization that "has Dick Cheney on their speed dial".
  • Episodes of the TV series Jericho feature appearances by members of a fictional PMC called Ravenwood, originally being employed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, but later started working for themselves.
  • The British TV series The State Within featured a PMC called CMC Secure Operations which was involved in human rights abuses in the fictional former Soviet republic of Tyrgyzstan.
  • In movie Proof of Life , Russell Crowe was former SAS soldier works for British PMC called Lothan Risk .

Books

Resources

Academic publications

  • The Market for Force: The Consequences of Privatizing Security, by Deborah D. Avant, George Washington University, August 2005. ISBN 0-521-61535-6
  • Private Armies and Military Intervention, David Shearer, April 1998. ISBN 0-19-829440-9
  • Corporate Warriors: The Rise of the Privatized Military Industry, Peter W. Singer, Cornell University Press, March 2004. ISBN 0-8014-8915-6
  • Brillstein, Arik: Antiterrorsystem. Engel Publishing 2005 - ISBN 3938547006
  • "Soldiers of Misfortune – Is the Demise of National Armies a Core Contributing Factor in the Rise of Private Security Companies?" by Maninger, Stephan in Kümmel, Gerhard and Jäger, Thomas (Hrsg.) Private Security and Military Companies: Chances, Problems, Pitfalls and Prospects, VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden, 2007. ISBN 978-3-531-149011

Non-academic publications

  • Making A Killing, James Ashcroft. Virgin Books. ISBN 1-85227-311-9
  • Licensed to Kill : Privatizing the War on Terror, Robert Young Pelton ISBN 1-4000-9781-9
  • Three Worlds Gone Mad: Dangerous Journeys through the War Zones of Africa, Asia, and the South Pacific, Robert Young Pelton, August 2006. ISBN 1-59228-100-1
  • An Unorthodox Soldier, Tim Spicer, September 2000. ISBN 1-84018-349-7
  • Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army, Jeremy Scahill, Nation Books. February 2007. ISBN-13 978-1560259794

See also

References

  1. ^ Peter W. Singer (2005-03-01). "Outsourcing War". Foreign Affairs.
  2. ^ Barnes, Julian E. (2007-10-15). "America's own unlawful combatants?". Los Angeles Times.
  3. ^ a b c Yeoman, Barry (2003-06-01). "Soldiers of Good Fortune". Mother Jones. Retrieved 2007-05-08. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ^ Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld to Speak at JHU SAIS, press release December 2 2005
  5. ^ Bill Number H.R.5122 for the 109th Congress
  6. ^ H.R. 5122 109th: John Warner National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2007
  7. ^ Farah Stockman (01-07-2007). "Contractors in war zones lose immunity". The Boston Globe. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ^ Journal of International Peace Operations
  9. ^ http://ipoaonline.org/php/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=156&Itemid=80
  10. ^ Crisis as SAS men quit for lucrative Iraq jobs, The Daily Telegraph article dated 15/02/2005
  11. ^ Soldiers to be allowed a year off to go to Iraq to earn £500 a day as guards, The Daily Telegraph article dated 23/05/2004
  12. ^ $150,000 incentive to stay in US elite forces, The Daily Telegraph article dated 07/02/2005
  13. ^ Special forces get pay raise, National Post article dated August 26 2006
  14. ^ Merle, Renae (2006-12-05). "Census Counts 100,000 Contractors in Iraq". Washington Post. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  15. ^ "Coalition Provisional Authority Order 17 (revised)" (pdf).
  16. ^ A movieclip containing the behavior of alleged Aegis Defence Services driving in Iraq
  17. ^ 'Trophy' video exposes private security contractors shooting up Iraqi drivers, Daily Telegraph article from 26/11/2005.
  18. ^ Discussion on a blog about Aegis trophy video
  19. ^ Blackwater license being revoked in Iraq
  20. ^ http://www.cpa-iraq.org/regulations/20040627_CPAORD_17_Status_of_Coalition__Rev__with_Annex_A.pdf
  21. ^ Hirch, Michael (2007-09-20). "Blackwater and the Bush Legacy". Newsweek. p. 2. Retrieved 2007-09-23. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  22. ^ "Blackwater staff face charges". CNN.com. 2007-09-23. Retrieved 2007-09-23. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  23. ^ U.S. firm offers 'private armies' for low-intensity conflicts, WorldTribune article from March 29 2006
  24. ^ Congo Holding 3 Americans in Alleged Coup Plot, Washington Post article from May 25 2006
  25. ^ Congo Deports Nearly 3 Dozen Foreigners, Washington Post article from May 29 2006.
  26. ^ Honduras: Iraq mercenaries recruited, blog off World War 4 Report
  27. ^ SkyLink Air and Logistic Support (USA) Inc., Center for Public Integrity report

Websites focusing on private military companies

Selected items focusing on Iraq

Other sites

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