Corporate Warriors; The Rise of the Privatized Military Industry

It was only indirectly that I first stumbled across the phenomenon of private companies offering military services for hire. I had never heard of such a thing, until I joined a U. N. -supported project in 1996, researching the postwar situation in Bosnia. As we interviewed regional specialists, government officials, local military analysts, and peacekeepers in the field, it soon became evident that the entire military balance in the Balkans had become dependent on the activities of one small company based in Virginia, (Military Professional Resources Incorporated)—MPRI. I visited the firm’s regional offices, located in a nondescript building along the Sarajevo riverfront, where the firm coordinated the arming and training of the Bosnian military. The members of the firm were polite and generally helpful, but the ambiguity between who they were and what they were doing always hung in the air. They were employees of a private company, but were performing tasks inherently military. It just did not settle with the way we tended to understand either business or warfare. However, there they were, simply doing their jobs, but in the process altering the entire security balance in the region. I was struck by this seeming disconnect, between the way we normally view the world of military affairs and the way it actually is, and wanted to learn more. I spent the next years following just that path, interviewing hundreds who either work in the industry or are close observers of it and even spent a period working at the Pentagon, helping to oversee one of the firm’s contracts. In the time since, both the industry and the firm I visited have certainly grown up. MPRI was recently bought by a Fortune-500 firm, while other companies offering military services have been discussed in many of the world's most prominent newspapers, radio, and TV outlets. 1 Beyond the general media, the idea of private businesses as viable and legitimate military actors has also begun to gain credence among a growing number of political analysts and officials, from all over the political spectrum. 2 Their activities have caught the attention of legislative officials in a number of countries and led to the submission of several bills covering their actions. 3 An international forum of African heads of states advised their use in certain situations, as did the commander of the U. N. operation in Sierra Leone. 4 Even Sir Brian Urquart, considered the founding father of U. N. peacekeeping, advocated the hire of such firms.5 Another sign of emerging market maturity is that a new industry trade association, International Peace Operations. Association (IPOA), recently formed to lobby on behalf of military firms. Such company contracts are protected under proprietary law, often making their activities completely deniable. This secrecy can be an advantage to this line of business, and may in part explain its boom. The aura of mystery, however, somewhat curtails outside study. Thus, this work should be read with these limitations in mind. I have done my utmost to weed out the rumors from the facts and provide an objective analysis of the industry, indicating whenever appropriate what is confirmed and what is suspected. At the very least, it is the most complete overview of the private military industry available in the public domain. This study has been written with the conscious decision to speak to three different audiences. The first is the academic world. I hope that this project helps scholars and students (whether they study security issues, international relations theory-, political economy, or regional studies) gain greater insight into the privatized military phenomenon, not only its emergence, but also its importance. I also hope that the study dares academic readers to reexamine their theoretical presumptions. We should take a look beyond the dusty histories in the library and ensure that our understanding of the world is still in line with the momentous reality of an international system replete with players such as these firms. The second audience is the world of policy. Every day, individuals working in the field of foreign affairs and defense matters (whether in the government, the military, international organizations, humanitarian groups, or even the press) respond to crises and conflicts that touch on matters intimate to this new industry. Last is the general reader. Although the aim is a work of substance, I also hope to serve the individual who really doesn’t care about the fate of neo-realism or may never contract with one of these firms, but is simply looking to learn about a fascinating topic. The stories, personalities, and possibilities that emerge from this new industry are truly beguiling. Politics and war-fare are fundamentally exciting stuff. Of greater significance, they are also matters far too important to be left to the so-called experts.