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Outsourcing military training: the role of security networks in foreign military assistance
Eugenio Cusumano1
Abstract International security is now characterized by a shift from government to governance, and by greater reliance on networked forms of coordination between public, non-governmental and commercial actors, referred to a security networks. The rise of private military and security companies (PMSCs) clearly shows the increasing fragmentation of security policy-making and implementation among public and private actors. While much of the current focus has been on the role of contractors in war operations, this paper will focus on another area where the practice is widespread: the provision of foreign military assistance and security sector reform. After briefly comparing the different roles played by PMSCs in the United States, the United Kingdom and France, this paper will focus on an exploratory case study particularly suitable to explore the complexities of outsourcing security sector reform: the reconstruction of the Liberian military, carried out by the PMSCs DynCorp and PAE for the US government. As a form of delegation that involves an institutional principal and a commercial agent, this instance of military assistance will be grasped by using principal-agent theory, so as to provide theoretical basis for a hitherto missing fine-grained examination of these security networks, their structure and their potential shortcomings.
ACOTA: African Contingency Operations Training ACRI: African Crisis Response Initiative AFL: Armed Forces of Liberia AFRICAP: African Peacekeeping Program AU: African Union COR: Contracting Officer Representative DAC: OECD Development Assistance Committee DDRR: Disarmament, Demobilization, Rehabilitation and Reintegration DFID: British Department for International Development DoD: United States Department of Defense DoS: United States Department of State DSL: Defence Systems Limited (now ArmorGroup) ECOMOG: ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) Monitoring Group GTM: Government Technical Manager ICGL: International Contact Group on Liberia IDIQ: Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity MPRI: Military professional Resources Inc. OECD: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development ODC: Office of Defence Cooperation PAE: Pacific Architect and Engineers QRU: police Quick Reaction Unit SSR: Security Sector Reform TGL: Transitional Government of Liberia UNMIL: United Nations Mission in Liberia UNPOL: United Nations Police Mission in Liberia USAID: United States Agency for International Development
This paper aims to bridge the existing gap in the literature by exploring in detail the role of security networks and PMSCs in particular in the provision of military assistance and SSR. H. Privatizing Military Training (Washington. A. in other words. political accountability and legal liability of both the statutory and the non-statutory providers of coercion3. 2003. (London: Transaction). (ed. comprising sections four and five. 18: 1. On the one hand. excluding few exceptions2. Munster: Lit Vertag 5 Krahmann E. A Case Study of Outsourcing in Liberia. ‘Conceptualizing Security Governance’. 2007. the debate on private military and security companies (PMSCs) has focused on the role of these actors in supporting war operations. Journal of Security Sector manager 5 (1). See also Hanggi H. DC: Foreign Policy In Focus. are much more than mere objects of SSR: they are also actors that are increasingly involved in the direct provision of military assistance and security sector reform4. the literature security sector reform has recently started to take into account commercial providers of security. ‘Conceptualising Security Sector Reform and Reconstruction’ in Bryden. Indeed. non-governmental and business actors.Introduction The growing involvement of private actors in peacebuilding. referred to as security networks5. international military and security sector assistance forcefully shows that security policies are increasingly characterized by a shift from government to governance. (2005) Security Governance and Networks: New Theoretical Perspectives in Transatlantic Security'. 2005. Avant D. 19-34
. The Consequences of Privatizing Security. On the other hand. and Smith D. military assistance and security sector reform (SSR) has to date gone largely unnoticed in the academic literature. The second part. concentrating on the activities of security contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan without exploring in detail the private provision of training programmes. The Market for force. E. it will proceed as follows. 3-22 4 An exception to the tendency to overlook the role of commercial actors in the provision of SSR are Mancini F. 5-26.) Reform and Reconstruction of the Security Sector. PMSCs have largely been considered merely as an object of SSR: they are seen. Krahmann. 2004. PMSCs. New York: Cambridge University Press 3 Richard A. The first three section will present the key concepts used in this paper. as bodies to be regulated alongside public security forces so as to ensure the effectiveness. 2005). Cooperation and Conflict 38:1. will explore the role played by commercial actors in different
Avant D. Local Ownership and Emerging Trends in SSR. 1-14. (eds.2005. and by greater reliance on networked forms of coordination and complex partnerships between public. and Hanggi. however. in Donais T. Regulating local and international private security companies as well as the other non-state providers of violence is certainly crucial for the success of SSR and peace-building efforts. October 12. introducing the concept of security networks. Addressing the role of private security companies within security sector reform programmes.) Local Ownership in Security Sector Reform. Cambridge Review of International Affairs. In Good Company? The Role of Business in Security Sector Reform (International Peace Institute Policy Paper) and Ebo A.. briefly defining private military and security companies and finally analyzing the reasons why military assistance is increasingly being privatized. exploring the notion of security sector reform and its importance for peacebuilding. To date. In order to do so.2008. however.
while the British Ministry of Defence has so far proved wary to outsource foreign military training.states. An in-depth analysis of the Liberian case. a private enterprise in which the government is the concurring shareholder6. training and fielding of the Liberian armed forces was completely outsourced to contractors working for the private military firms Dyncorp and Pacific Architects and Engineers. hired by the State Department. both to protect its personnel and assets overseas and to help foreign governments to reform their security institutions. seems to have maintained a more state-centric approach in the field of military assistance. In addition. (2003). 49 .66
. However. the outsourcing of military training has become a widespread practice. vetting. it is an unprecedented programme in magnitude and ambition. with contractors providing assistance to a huge array of countries. 1. complemented by insights drawn on principal-agent and network analysis. Although different types of training are taken into account. it is a case of security sector reconstruction rather than merely reform. the outsourcing of which presents a number of both normative and empirical dilemmas. France too has witnessed an embryonic form of privatization. The UK. Hence. where the police and above all the army were rebuilt from scratch. It will then focus a case study the analysis of which can shed more light on the potential and the shortcomings of these security networks: the provision of SSR in Liberia. Finally. the recruiting. This program can be considered as a watershed in security sector reform for a number of reasons. both in the developed and the developing world. Cultures & Conflits 52 (4). The third part will introduce principal-agent theory and explore its potential as a source of hypotheses and a valuable heuristic tool to investigate privatized military assistance. although sometimes accompanied by contractors with support functions. Firstly. the British Department for International Development (DFID) has made an extensive use of private security contractors. including training. In the United States. as many types of military assistance. particular attention will be dedicated to the military component of security sector reform. with British International Military Assistance Training Teams being composed only by uniformed personnel.
Chapleau P. De Bob Denard aux sociétés militaires privées à la française. will be used to preliminarily show the potential as well as the risks and the accountability problems arising from the private provision of military assistance and security sector reform. are provided by the Défense Conseil International. What: Security Sector Reform and peace-building This paper is looking at the involvement of the private sector in the provision of all the services associated with military assistance. on the other hand.
A. URL <http://www. Kosovo. Strengthening the Security. the SSR lexicon soon become adopted by the peace support operations agenda and literature. p. In spite of its success among both academics and practitioners. due to the growing awareness that the persistence of unprofessional and politicized security forces can compromise the success of peacekeeping missions by triggering new waves of violence. At its core.Development Nexus: Assessing International Policy and Practice Since the 1990s. Mozambique. 22 8 International Peace Academy 2004.un. which was sponsored in many conflict and post-conflict situations such as Afghanistan.810 10 Brzoska M. Conceptualizing Security Sector Reform. (eds) Reform and Reconstruction of the Security Sector. 2004. The notion of security sector reform. while briefly analyzing the role of the commercial sector as a whole.pdf > p.oecd. 2006. Democratization 13:5. Haiti. SSR is considered as a critical element for successful democratic transition9. Bosnia and Herzegovina. The following sections will hence present and define security sector reform as well as security networks and PMSCs. it largely focuses on one specific type of actors: private military and security companies. is grounded on the increasing awareness that an efficient. H. (eds) Reform and Reconstruction of the Security Sector. The very concept of SSR has stemmed from the awareness that “security and development are interlinked. (London: Transaction) 11 Hanggi H. In addition. 791 .org/esa/peacebuilding/Library/Strengthening_SecDev_Nexus_IPA. in Bryden. As a consequence. and Heinemann-Gruder A. Besides being crucial for development. The OECD defines SSR as the effort
OECD DAC Handbook on Security System Reform (SSR) 2007. however. Liberia. Security Sector Reform and Post-Conflict Reconstruction under International Auspices. disarmament. international interventions in post-conflict situations have now expanded so as to encompass demobilization. in Bryden. holding the peace process hostage to partisan interests and delaying the disengagement of international peacekeepers. and Hanggi.org/dataoecd/43/25/38406485. interdependent and mutually reinforcing”8. it refers to the efforts to ensure an efficient and effective provision of state and human security within a framework of democratic governance11. Tajikistan and East Timor10. The concept of security sector (or security system7) reform. the concept of security sector reform remains somehow vague and contested. A. originated in the development community at the end of the Nineties.pdf>. institutions and programmes traditionally associated with development have become involved in the security sphere and vice versa. 2004. Georgia. The Challenge of the Security Sector and Security Reform Processes in Democratic Transitions: The Case of Sierra Leone. Azerbaijan. reintegration and rehabilitation of former combatants (DDRR) as well as SSR. and Hanggi. legitimate and accountable security sector is a crucial precondition for poverty reduction. (London: Transaction)
. Supporting Security URL < http://www. was not adopted exclusively by aid agencies. Macedonia. 1 9 Knifle J.In addition. As a consequence. Iraq. H.
police. 22
. the narrower focus of more traditional security assistance on defence. 8 15 OECD DAC Handbook on Security System Reform. intelligence and policing12. the security sectors includes
“ (a) State institutions which have a formal mandate to ensure the safety of the state and its citizens against acts of violence and coercion (e. but also non-military security agencies. Reflecting the broadening of the notion of security and the shift from state to human and societal security. 5 . Security Issues and Development Co-operation: A Conceptual Framework for Enhancing Policy Coherence.oecd. 2009 ‘Morocco: Reforms in the Security Sector But No “SSR”’. p. internal or external. SSR is sponsored by international
OECD Development Cooperation Directorate 2005. the intelligence and similar bodies). the OECD itself has later on emphasized that a truly comprehensive approach to SSR should also address non-statutory security forces such as militias and private security companies15. Security-sector reform: development breakthrough or institutional engineering? Conflict. in Security Sector Reform in Challenging Environments. defence ministry.pdf. whether financial or technical. non-state agencies are often involved in the provision of security. transparency and the rule of law. p. Security System Reform and Governance. See also Smith C. a type of technical military assistance aimed exclusively at improving the effectiveness of military forces can be considered as a reform of the security sector. Security & Development 1 (1). As a consequence.g. without truly being security sector reform13. Hence. 11 13 On the distinction between security sector reform and reform of the security sector see for instance Mattes H. Peace and Development 2000. the concept of security sector encompasses military forces. URL http://www. according to the OECD. 2009): 143-163. Parliament. reform is carried out autonomously by some government without any type of external assistance. Co-operation.org/dataoecd/8/39/31785288. eds Hans Born and Albrecht Schnabel (Munster: LIT. In other cases.“ to increase partner countries’ ability to meet the range of security needs within their societies in a manner consistent with democratic norms and sound principles of governance. armed forces. and (b) the elected and/or duly appointed civil authorities responsible for control and oversight of these institutions (e. Under the general label of SSR lie different types of assistance and institutional arrangements.g. judicial and penal systems)”14
Whether officially or de facto.
As the notion of SSR is grounded on the effort to ensure greater legitimacy and accountability. as well as the governmental agencies that are responsible for security policies. however. SSR includes. but extends well beyond. the Executive. p.20 14 Informal DAC Task Force on Conflict. In some cases.
Creating a security sector that is functioning. op. and be exploited by local actors with partisan interests to their own advantage.
. together with the shortage of human and financial resources available to foreign ministries. will be considered here. While SSR is certainly a political process. in danger of being exacerbated by the greater involvement of private actors. While promising to fill the capacities gap. In addition. cit. or by aid agencies and foreign and defence ministries of donor countries.. cit.. 11 20 Ibid. the issue is often forming rather than reforming the security sector17. together with the involvement of a greater number of local stakeholders. based on the synergy between aid agencies and foreign and defence ministries. cit. the complete lack of a functioning security sector or its massive politicization and involvement in war crimes make reform impossible. donors and international organizations carrying out SSR are not accountable to the local population of the territory where they operate. is recommended as an important tool of successful SSR. op. which will be analyzed in detail in the last part of this paper. Indeed.20 Human resources strain in governmental departments as well as the lack of the appropriate expertise. and require the demobilization of the legacy force and the rebuilding from scratch of new institutions. aid agencies and international organization has created a capacities gap19. is precisely an instance of security sector reconstruction. Hence. programmes the
Hanggi. has now pushed donors beyond a whole of government approach. an externally imposed SSR programme may suffer from a democratic deficit. The presence of a greater number of SSR providers. It is precisely in order to collect the required resources and expertise. op. both normative and empirical. that a whole of government approach. p. 16 In a post-conflict setting. may create coordination and oversight problems. the magnitude of SSR efforts. SSR efforts have to address a number of dilemmas. while at the same time ensuring greater consistency in donors’ programmes. Firstly. diverging preferences or even inter-agency rivalries may make cooperation between SSR providers difficult. Ironically.18 The case of Liberia. In such cases. Two main conundrums. 121-122 19 OECD 2007. p. Ibid.organizations. Insufficient communication.. p. legitimate and accountable in a context of state fragility or in a post-conflict or post authoritarian setting is by no doubt challenging. 134 18 Brozska and Heinemann-Gruder. these the programmes required should more appropriately be labelled as security sector reconstruction rather than reform. the participation of a broader network of actors in SSR may also pose problems and trade-offs. encouraging the greater involvement of non-governmental and commercial actors. often unavailable among governmental personnel.
On the contrary. Who: Security networks in SSR The notion of security network is ideal to grasp the growing complexity of SSR and military assistance programs. (ed) 2008. planners and providers of training programmes. democratic security sector are not subject to any form of accountability to the direct stakeholders21. but empirical too. international security is characterized by a shift towards a market-based allocation of services. public-private partnerships and networked rather than exclusively hierarchical forms of coordination25. 25 Krahmann 2005. The involvement of commercial actors who not subjected to any type of political accountability is in danger of further worsening this problem. op. national. non-governmental and commercial actors in the role of financers. Although quantifying their role is impossible due to the paucity of reliable data. op. the involvement of the private sector in military assistance and SSR is huge. op. negatively affecting the transparency and ultimately the effectiveness of the SSR process. cit. 26 Mancini . Brozka. and appears to be booming26. p. cit. Lit Verlag 24 Krahmann 2003. Such a dilemma is not only normative. (2009). cit. The notion of security network precisely refers to the fact that. p. international security as a whole is characterized by a shift from government to governance24. involved both in the planning and the implementation of security policies. 2.
. As a consequence of the greater number and types of actors involved. Local Ownership and Security Sector Reform.main goal of which is the creation of an accountable. T. local ownership is crucial for any programme be successful22. 34: 3–2 22 OEDC 2007. Empowerment or Imposition? Dilemmas of Local Ownership in Post-Conflict Peacebuilding Processes. The involvement of non-state actors in SSR is hardly unique. cit. ranging from non-governmental organisations to private military and security companies. and needs to be enhanced by engaging stakeholders in the designing and implementation of the reform. 14. Indeed. As acknowledged by the overwhelming majority of SSR literature. op. 23 For a review of the concept of local ownership see Donais T. Hanggi. programmes that are designed and implemented by foreign actors are likely to be rejected and ultimately fail23. in addition to states. The growing practice of contracting out the planning and the implementation of SSR and military assistance program epitomizes the establishment of such ties. commercial entities are increasingly active in the provision of SSR and military training. op. cit. Without the willingness of local players to cooperate and assimilate the norms that are being promoted into their own institutional culture. As of 2006. 132. we can today observe a growing number of international institutions and private actors. See also Donais. Peace & Change. increasingly involving international. more than the 90% of the
On the lack of accountability of SSR programmes see Brozska and Heinemann-Gruder.
carrying out both management and diagnosis services and military and police training. 15 29 Brooks. Private armies and military intervention (1998) O’ Brien.
Messner J. the greatest private military and security industry group. second annual report. which directly hired a PMSC to run some programme. p.pdf 28 Mancini 2005. suggests the use of a single label. financed training and equipping for the Nigerian police32. In some cases. while all aimed at improving the effectiveness. 19. but also in its financing. do not necessarily have a military or police component. management support. URL <http://peaceops. POI Report. capable of providing both private military and private security services rather than focusing either on the former or on the latter. Only PMSCs. July-September 30 D. D. 145 Royal United Services Institute Journal (2000) 1. 2007. that is assistance in designing security strategies and military doctrines as well as governmental departments’ organizational structures28. training programmes can also be funded by non-state and business actors. Myths and Mercenaries: the debate on private military companies’. Transnational corporations such as Shell. 1999. While most authors have tried to distinguish between military and security companies30. nonstate and commercial actors are involved not only in the planning and the provision of military and police assistance. On the one hand. a government can directly sign a contract with a firm to train and reform its security sector. services that were previously carried out by states’ military and police forces29. are capable of providing services across the spectrum of SSR. legitimacy and accountability of a state’s security sector. and Gracielly Y. for instance. for a profit. for a wide range of both developed and developing countries. The Military Intelligence Professional Bulletin. 25 32 Ibid. The training e of the Bosnian army after the Dayton Accords. This paper will then refer to the firms involved in military assistance and SSR as PMSCs. Corporate Soldiers and International Security: The Rise of Private Military Companies (2006).J. on the other hand. run by MPRI. p. was funded by a network of Islamic states and charities31. 31 Avant 2005. The services provided by commercial actors in SSR programmes can be divided into three broad categories: training. however. This was the case. p. State of the peace and stability operation industry.members of the International Peace Operations Association (IPOA). were reportedly offering training services and SSR services27. SSR encompasses a broad range of activities that. Hence. Kinsey. Shearer. There are two ways by which a PMSC can be involved in military assistance. the fluid nature of the market and the low level of specialization of most firms.org/poi/images/stories/poi_rp_industrysurvey2007. Management support and some types of policy review see the involvement of a wide array or firms or freelance consultants. diagnosis and policy review. A minimum definition of PMSCs is precisely that of firms providing. 124-125
. ‘PMCs. The Business End of Military Intelligence: Private Military Companies. p.
who had had a crucial role in military training and assistance in the previous decades. First. while British PMSCs like Watchguard. 35 US Department of Defense. the propensity to use commercial entities to carry out military tasks stems from the ‘tectonic change’in the international strategic landscape triggered by the end of the Cold War. Saladin. DSL (now ArmorGroup) have been involved in military assistance starting from the end of the Sixties. the downsizing of major armies broadened the supply of military expertise enormously. a PMSC can be hired directly by the foreign ministry. In the 2001 Quadrennial Defense Review.mil/pubs/pdfs/QDR2001. that the transformations following the end of the Cold War played a crucial role in the creation of a market for military assistance for a number of reasons. (2002). Quadrennial Defense Review Report (30 September 2001) http://www. plummeted especially in Africa36. London: Lynne Rienner . 36 Mandel R.defenselink. The US firm Vinnell. Why: the reasons underlying the outsourcing of SSR The reasons why SSR as well as military assistance are being increasingly outsourced are manifold. for instance. for instance. Next section will briefly review the reasons underlying the abrupt surge of the private provision of SSR. KMS. this holds true for the provision of military assistance alone as well. At the same time. such as foreign military training. The rise of the privatized military industry (2003) at 49.33 While Singer refers to the provision of services along the military spectrum.35 In addition. 56
. An embryonic private military sector providing military training services existed both in the United States and the United Kingdom well before the end of the Cold War. Corporate Warriors. The presence of military advisors. Gurkha Security Guards. ranging from logistics to direct combat. Armies without states. however. The strain on human and financial resources encouraged the specialization of military personnel and the outsourcing of functions other than combat. but increasingly characterizes other countries as well. the end of the Cold War produced a disentanglement of major powers from many areas of the developing world. it is worth noting that both the security and the development sector are witnessing a growing tendency to rely on the non-governmental and commercial sector. It is true. According to Peter Singer. the US Department of Defense (DoD) planned the gradual privatization of all activities not ‘directly linked to warfighting’. Avant 2005. First of all. won a contract to train Saudi Arabian National Guard already in 197734. the increasing practice of outsourcing is driven by an ideological shift produced by the ‘privatization revolution’ following the rise of neoliberalism. but also the growing awareness that an engagement
P. 3. the ministry of defence or the aid agency of a donor country to provide military assistance and SSR in another state. Finally. The privatization of security.pdf [last accessed 10 July 2010] at 53. the transformations within Western armies increased the demand for external contractors.W Singer. p.Alternatively. This is often the case in the United States.
co. Kofi Annan declared that he even contemplated the possibility to use private security companies for peacekeeping missions. the top ten for-profit firms working for the US agency for international development (USAID) have received almost 5. cit.ditchley. Donors and their military institutions often lack the human resources and the expertise to carry out fully-fledged SSR programmes. 125 41 Author’s interview with DFID officials 42 Mancini. op. it is unsurprising that the use of private firms has become common practice in SSR. Avant.htm [last accessed 10 July 2010]. cit.. development and peacekeeping community. police and intelligence training capacities. contractors are already heavily involved in the provision of logistics and support for various Nato. foreign aid and humanitarian relief are increasingly provided by corporations. private companies can provide greater flexibility. 44
. cit. documents issued by USAID publicly acknowledged that the role of the agency had shifted from direct provider of aid to contractors’ manager and supervisor. outsourcing seems an ideal solution to address the abovementioned capacity gap in SSR implementation. Annan. the UN and African Union peacekeeping missions39. NGOs and individual social entrepreneurs. Even if the UN Secretary concluded that the world was “not ready for privatized peacekeeping”38. Firstly. is a booming business: from 2002 to 2009. which lies at the overlap of these three areas. security sector reform appears particularly suited for the involvement of commercial actors for a number of reasons. Indeed. op. in particular. p.41 Being the practice of outsourcing so widespread in the defence.37 This is epitomized by Kofi Annan’s Global Compact Initiative. which require different types of expertise ranging from public administration and accountancy to military. 39 Author’s interviews with representatives of the industry 40 Sanger. offering avenues to avoid the lengthy bureaucratic procedures connected with the recruitment and the
Singer.. can recruit on the market on ad hoc bases types of expertise that governmental departments cannot afford to keep in house so as to easily build multidisciplinary teams that can operate throughout the spectrum of SSR activities42.with the private sector is crucial for world governance. cit. In addition. Stanger A. Not only the security and peacekeeping sector. The British Department for International Development (DFID) also acknowledged the importance of outsourcing and public-private partnerships in its provision of foreign aid. Ditchley Foundation lecture (26 June 1998) http://www. but also development agencies are increasingly characterized by a huge reliance on the private sector. p. op.. For-profit foreign aid. let alone the appropriate language skills. In the US as well as in other states. Yale University Press K.uk/page/173/lecture-xxxv. on the other hand. based on the attempt to establish strategic partnerships between the UN and the private sector on issues such as human rights. op. Commercial firms.8 billion dollars in procurements40. labour and the environment. (2009) A nation under contract. In addition. In 2005.
Washington DC. outsourcing was chosen because US uniformed personnel are restricted from training non-state security forces46. The privatization decision. often sceptical towards human security-centred approaches to military assistance43. This is particularly true for foreign military training: while studies on the cost effectiveness of private providers of security and logistics have recently proliferated. pp. which is often missing in the market for military training. the use of contractors allows the State Department to autonomously run its policies without the involvement of the Department of Defense and its personnel. however. Economic theory suggests that rather than by merely privatizing some service. New York: Basic Books
. p. In SSR and military assistance. Congressional Budget Office 2008. the bureaucratic and political convenience of outsourcing stems from the possibility to rely on contractors to circumvent existing legal restrictions associated with the deployment of military personnel. which makes it a promising option given the narrow budget of many SSR programs. Contractors’ support of US Operations in Iraq. outsourcing is often associated with cost-effectiveness. costeffectiveness arises from the existence of meaningful competition. Outsourcing can thus magnify the capacity of some governmental agencies to act autonomously and push forward their own agenda without having to negotiate policy and strategies with other departments44. the paucity of reliable data does not allow researchers and practitioners to ultimately confirm the greater costeffectiveness of contractors.16-17 48 Donhaue J. In Colombia in 2000. Author’s interview with DoS officials and representatives of the private military and security industry 45 Singer. 1991. the use of PMSCs allowed the administration to circumvent the limitations posed by Congress on the number of US uniformed personnel and the Colombian units they could train and assist45. as in the case of the Sudan People Liberation Army. and from the use of appropriate types of contractual arrangements48. for instance. op. currently being trained by Dyncorp contractors.47 no research has to date focused on the cost-effectiveness of private military training. Iraq and Afghanistan interim report. At What Cost? Contingency Contracting in. contractors are usually assigned to a narrow pool of firms.deployment on the field of state civilian and military personnel. To date. 207 46 Author’s interviews with DoS officials and representatives of the private military and security industry 47 See for instance Commission on Wartime Contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan 2009. but also over democratic control of the export of military expertise from within Western countries. The possibility to use contractors so as to circumvent legal restrictions over foreign military assistance clearly raises questions not only over the accountability of privatized military training to host countries’ stakeholders. cit. In some cases. More recently. fuelled by the massive involvement of contractors in Iraq. The US African peacekeeping program (AFRICAP) is a case in point: only the four companies that previously won a five-years indefinite-delivery indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) umbrella contract can
Author’s interview with DoS officials and representatives of the private military and security industry The role of inter-agency rivalries in the tendency to rely on PMSCs is still largely unexplored. In the case of US-sponsored SSR. In addition.
PMSCs are also sometimes chosen because of their lower visibility51: indeed. The role of the private sector in military assistance in the US US administrations have long viewed training of and assistance to security forces around the world as crucial tools of U.submit bids for training and support contracts all across Africa. looking at the different role of public-private arrangements in the US. Oxford: Oxford University Press 51 Mancini. and are thus hardly a recipe for cost-effectiveness50. 46 52 Author’s interviews with DoS officials and representatives of the private military and security industry 53 Avant. the UK and France. p. Nov/Dec 2009 Dickinson L. p. URL <http://www. Foreign Military Training and DOD Engagement Activities of Interest: Joint Report to Congress for FY 2000-01. US law defines foreign military training as
Mason K. cit. Contracts as a tool for regulating private military companies.S. their civilian employees. when a new AFRICAP umbrella contract was awarded. Executive Summary. cit.. The deployment of military personnel is a post-war setting is a sensitive and objectionable issue that can raise parliamentary scrutiny and public opposition.state.2 billion dollars55. the United States has trained around 100. Finally. Such a lower visibility of contractors can also provide advantages for decision-makers in their domestic political arena. flexibility.. op.. pp. Delaying Peacekeeing AFRICAP. which often takes place below the radar of Congressional and public scrutiny. 4. not wearing a uniform. allowed US administration to train the military forces of country with a poor human right record without engaging in a public debate over the opportunity and the content of these programs53. in Chesterman and Lehnardt (eds. 125
. although they may rely on other companies as subcontractors49. Department of State. cost-effectiveness and discretion are the main perceived advantages of outsourcing military assistance and security sector reform. Expertise.gov/t/pm/rls/rpt/fmtrpt/2001> 55 Avant. While this system ensures greater timeliness in deployment and greater flexibility in the implementation of programmes these types of contracts hamper competition and do not provide meaningful incentives for firms to lower down the cost. Next sections. In the last two decades. op. are a much more discreet presence than active duty military personnel. or trigger major political drawbacks in case incidents occur. who can sometimes be unwelcome in a host country52. the State Department budget for military training amounted to 5. Before 2009. op. (2007).. In 2005 only. national security policy. competition was even more limited. cit.) From Mercenaries to Market: The Rise and Regulation of Private Military Companies.000 soldiers in over 180 countries in the world54. In some cases the deployment of contractors. as only two firms were allowed to submit bids. will try to provide a more finegrained description of the security networks involved in military assistance and security sector reform and investigate their limits as well as their potential.S. Journal of International Peace Operations. 155-156 54 U.
cit 62 Avant. Police and military training have become increasingly intertwined. that the use of private contractors hired directly by US agencies to provide foreign military assistance became a widespread practice63. After the end of the Cold War. As abovementioned. Yemen. p. U. while Booz Allen developed a programme to train South Vietnamese officers in the late Sixties62. at 13 61 Lumpe. and have taken place in various Muslim countries such as Azerbaijan. p. for instance. training programmes for foreign armed forces. 5 60 US Department of Defense.S.“formal or informal instruction of foreign soldiers by officers or employees of the U. the growing attention to new types of threats as well as the greater focus on human security has led to an increase in the assistance to police forces. the commercial provision of military and police forces has gained greater prominence. 2002. Ronco. Turkey. p. Global Power. however. Foreign Military Training: Global Reach. seen as a prime component of its strategy of “constructive engagement. the Clinton administration put a new emphasis on military training. US firms like MPRI. Foreign Policy in Focus special issue. and assist partner-nation security forces and contribute to coalition and peacekeeping operations60. Cubic. p. government or by private contractors authorized by the U. and it can occur either overseas or into US bases. government”. 4 59 Ibid. often carried out by special operations forces have become a key part of President Bush’s global war on terror. After the end of the Cold War. the provision of military assistance by US private firms is not entirely new. FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) officials61. While military training has long been prevalent in the US assistance agenda. op. The US firm Vinnell trained the Saudi Arabian National Guard already in 1975. Indonesia. the Philippines59. op. Section 47 Lumpe L. Uzbekistan. were used to provide military technical support to OECD armed forces and special operation forces and military assistance and SSR to South American states such as
United States Arms Export Control Act. Military and security forces training has been provided by US active duty and reserve soldiers working in mentorship and training teams.56
Training includes theory as well as operational field instruction. special operation forces. advise. capabilities to train.”58 Since September 11. cit. Ethiopia. however. Quadrennial Defense Review Report (12 February 2010). The Obama administration has also emphasized the importance of foreign military training: the latest Quadrennial Defense Review. It was only with the Clinton administration.. 114
Author’s interview with DoS officials and private military and security industry representatives
. 1 58 Ibid.S.. especially in counternarcotics and counterterrorism programmes and missions57. and Oversight Issues..S. Nothrop Grupmann.S. Pakistan.Tajikistan. pledged to “Enhancing U.
on the other hand. 99 66 McFate. 2008.. SAIC and various other firms as subcontractors – won a contract for the training of nine battalions of the new Iraqi army. 507-528. The latest US military commitments triggered a further involvement of contractors in the provision of military training and SSR in other areas of the world too: one of the reasons for the decision to outsource the training of the Liberian military was the strain on US uniformed personnel caused by their commitment in Iraq and Afghanistan66. The Implications of Marketized Security for IR Theory: The Democratic Peace. Ecuador and Peru. p. pp. for a wide range of countries such as the U. See also Singer. and the Nature and Frequency of Conflict.Colombia. Vol. pp. Late State Building. The contract was cancelled the following year.Review of African Political Economy. designed to help African countries in developing peacekeeping and counterterrorism capacities67. 120-131. p. which replaced ACRI. 35: 118. after training proved to be unsuccessful. p. In June 2003. 4. designed to train African forces for peacekeeping and conflict prevention. whose admission to NATO had been made conditional to the restructuring of their military forces according to Western standards64. which covers the export of
Ibid. is more likely to provide small teams of mentors for African armies rather then being capable of directly running full-scale training programmes68.K. Nigeria. and are crucial players in the now running African Contingency Operations Training and Assistance (ACOTA). US PMSCS can be hired directly by a foreign government to train and reform its military and security forces. Outsourcing the Making of Militaries: DynCorp International as Sovereign Agent.. Columbia. the AFRICOM. This was the case. On the contrary. Equatorial Guinea. p. No. The US International Traffic in Arms Regulation.. this is unlikely to reverse the current trend of greater reliance on contractors. In addition. Dyncorp. As abovementioned. Malawi. op. Pacific Architect and Engineers. 512
. with US firms such as MPRI. Vinnell – working with MPRI. 646 67 Author’s interviews with State Department Officials. S. cit. US military personnel and representatives of the private military and security industry 68 Author’s interview with DoD Officials 69 Avant D. all of which contracted directly with US PMSCs for military assistance services69. former Yugoslavian states such as Bosnia and Croatia and various Eastern European countries. Stanger. 3.. Rwanda. Perspectives on Politics. Such a process does not occur outside governmental control. providing assistance to a number of countries such as Angola. had a crucial role in training the Iraqi police and the Afghan Army65. the State Department is also massively reliant on contractors for its AFRICAP program. 645 — 654. While the Bush administration decided to establish an African Regional Command (AFRICOM). op. op. 124. for instance. cit. cit. Dyncorp. and Indonesia. Contractors have played a crucial role in SSR in Iraq and Afghanistan. Contractors started playing an important role in the African Crisis Response Initiative (ACRI). Hungary. Equatorial Guinea.(2006). Avant. Nothrop Grupmann. Nigeria. still based in Stuttgard. The greater involvement of contractors carrying out military assistance and SSR in Africa also started to gain greater prominence since the mid-Nineties.
. (2007) Regulating Private Military and Security Companies: The U. The abovementioned contract between Vinnell and the Saudi Arabian government. Alexander et al. With a new lobbying action. First. as Congress is notified only of contracts exceeding a threshold of 50 million dollars. While considered the most effective piece of legislation on the export of military assistance to date and ensuring the compatibility of training programs carried out by US firms for foreign governments with the national foreign policy and values. 72 Alternatively. cit. Human Rights and Labour. as abovementioned. while approved by the African Bureau. Private Military and Security Companies. private firms can also be contracted directly by an US governmental agency offering military and security forces training and assistance to foreign countries. Policies and Civil-Military Relations.S. London: Routledge 71 Avant 2006. albeit largely for security and logistics functions. worth 77 million dollars. the ITAR suffers from two major problems. makes the private provision of military assistance to a foreign country conditional to the award of a license from the State Department Office of Defense Trade Control. Approach’. in D. however. Since then. and too exposed to firms’ lobbying actions. which could eventually produce greater human rights respect and democratic openness while at the same time enhancing US national interests visà-vis an oil-rich region. Besides the lack of transparency and the excessive exposure to lobbying action of the offices involved in the licensing procedure. lacking in transparency. inconsistent. p. which. as even major procurements were often unpacked into smaller contracts so as to escape Congressional control. The contract signed in 1998 between the government of Equatorial Guinea and MPRI is a case in point. very few contracts exceeded the 50 million dollars cap. which consults all the other competent offices inside the DoS.both military goods and services. p. When MPRI first requested a license to evaluate Equatorial Guinea’s defence capabilities in 1998. was now turned down by the office of Democracy. was indeed notified to Congress. where it received substantial scrutiny and opposition. MPRI officials then visited DoS officials and Congress members to make the case for a strategy of engagement rather than isolation towards the African country. before taking a decision70. the African Bureau of the State Department rejected the request because of the country’s poor human rights record. Ethics. See also Caparini M. such as the appropriate Regional Bureaus or the Office of Democracy and Human Rights. 513 72 Avant 2006. The Department of Defense has relied on contractors to offer some kind of military support to various South American countries. the licensing process is described as idiosyncratic. the firm finally achieved the license in the spring of 200071.
Avant. while the US Development Agency (USAID) is also a substantial customer of PMSCs services. MPRI then submitted again its request for a license. the process suffers from insufficient democratic oversight. op. however.
While the legal authority to award contract always lies in the Procurement Office. in particular. other states whose armed forces also have a tradition of engagement with the former colonial world and its military forces. Watchguard international. various DoS offices. such as the United Kingdom and France are also characterized. considered as the second biggest in the world74. by the presence of firms offering military assistance and SSR and the growing tendency to rely on some type of commercial allocation of training services. and the still active firms Saladin. 22: 1. 147 — 161
. Hansen. such training takes place in bordering countries73. natural reserve guards in Kenya and Coastal Guards in Somalia76. Olive. British PMSCs can sign contracts with foreign governments without any formal obligation to achieve a license or even notify the contract to the Foreign Office. David Stirling. 90 76 Ibid. 5. The privatization of SSR in the UK and France The United States is by no doubt the leading country in the provision of privatized military assistance and security sector reform. Problems. Cambridge Review of International Affairs. The Second-Largest Security Industry in the World. Pitfalls and Prospects. (2009) The impact of private security companies on Somalia's governance networks. With regard to the private coastal guard training in Somalia see Kinsey. is also characterized by the presence of a strong private military and security industry. British firms such as the now defunct Watchguard. Wiesbaden:Vs Verlag. although given the high degree of tension in Somalia. the main purpose of Watchguard was precisely that of training and supporting the armed forces of allied governments in situations where the direct involvement of British uniformed personnel was not possible or not advisable75. ranging from fighting units in Sri Lanka and Sierra Leone to royal palace-guards and special forces in Middle Eastern countries.) Private Military and Security Companies: Chances. such as DRC. was created. have launched outsourced assistance programmes. DSL (now ArmorGroup) Hart. 2007. contractors carrying out some type of training for the US State Department are deployed in many post-conflict settings. Unlike their US counterpart. the greatest customer in the market for private military training and SSR. According to his creator.It is the State Department. p. Jarle and Franklin. it is in the UK that the first PMC. US uniformed personnel and representatives of the private military and security industry 74 Stone S. The United Kingdom. However. albeit to a lesser degree. Journal of International Peace Operations 3 (5) 75 Kinsey C. such as the International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Bureau and the African Bureau. Private Security Companies: Agents of Democracy or Simply Mercenaries. in Southern Sudan. 2008.
Author’s interviews with DoS official. Cote d’Ivoire. however. KMS. Gurkha Security Guards. At the moment of writing. in Jäger e Kümmel (eds. Indeed. have all been involved in the training of various type of security forces. Contractors are also assisting the Somalian Transitional Government’s armed forces.
which makes the British Defence establishment particularly wary of directly using military contractors in the developing world80. which sees training as a crucial part of their job79 as well as the previous involvement of British citizens in military ventures. The Company We Keep: Private Contractors in Jamaica. their role has been sporadic and limited to support functions77. Indeed. who brought expertise in community-based policing. France is also traditionally very active in the provision of military training. that is police officers training. While the British MoD has made a very limited use of private contractors in the provision of SSR. op. keep a special relationship with its former colonies and to push forward French arms exports. Atos. 2010. The reluctance of the British MoD to outsource foreign military assistance to the private sector is noteworthy: private firms are playing a crucial role in training and supporting the British army78. used as a way to project foreign policy influence. Unlike the United States and to a lesser extent the United Kingdom. this is not the case for another British governmental agency. but they are given only a very limited role in foreign military training. they do not work directly for the British Ministry of Defense to provide foreign military training. Among the first Western governmental agencies to acknowledge the importance of security sector reform for development. only £5 million of DFID £4. DFID contracted a management consulting company. cit. Civil Wars 8:2. This may be associated with British military culture. while some report the participation of contractors to British military assistance training team. however. it ought to be mentioned that to date only little of its budget is actually spent on upholding security forces assistance programs: as of 2005. In Jamaica. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 79 Avant 2005. op. cit. the British DFID has later on been involved in various SSR programmes. to assist the reform of the Jamaican police force. While the DFID has repeatedly emphasized the important of security sector reform in its public statements. Indeed. cit. 174 80 Kinsey 2006. The programme encompassed both management and technical assistance. the Department for International Development.While British PMSCs have been hired by many foreign states. 231-250
.. Like the United Kingdom. the DFID relies heavily on the private sector in the implementation of its policies. not only DFID is using private security contractors for the protection of its personnel and assets abroad and to run demining programmes: it has also hired private consultants and trainers to implement some of its police reform programmes82. 2006. p. citizens and the privatization of security. op. at 16 82 Author’s interview with representatives of the British private military and security industry 83 Mancini F. 81 Mancini 2005. France has to date retained a more state-centric approach. In spite of the low percentage of its budget dedicated to SSR. This type of assistance was carried out by former British policemen. States. crime investigation and professional standards83..6 billion budget was spent on SSR81. for instance. and
Author’s interviews with MoD officials and representatives of the private military and security industry On the massive privatization of defence logistics in the UK see Krahmann E.
and present itself as “a specialist of military formation. Establish to push forward French arms exports. the DCI is however involved in the transfer of military expertise as well. which allocates military services on a for-profit basis. McCubbins M.php 86 Ibid. a small pool of PMSCs such as Secopex. largely made of former Gendarmes and French Army Officials. 2000. The company currently has 700 employees. often with a military background. Kuwait. Created by economists as an analytic tool to investigate the relationships between an employer and an employee rather than as a fully-fledged theory. for instance. and Weingast B.groupedci. 6. this paper will analyze more in detail the characteristics of the security networks involved and try to understand their functioning and their potential shortcomings by using insights drawn on social network analysis and above all principal-agent analysis. 11 87 Strom K. As a mixed enterprise open to the participation of private shareholders. DCI is a private company in which the French government is the concurring shareholder with 49. American Journal of Political Science 28:1
. European Journal of Political Research 37: 261–289 88 For instance Moran M. Civil-military relations theory has also
Chapleau. p. The clearest evidence of the embryonic penetration of market logic within the French military training and advice sector is the Defense Conseil International. Congressional Oversight Overlooked: Police Patrols Versus Fire Alarms. Qatar and Malaysia. and Schwartz T. Still. also provide among their services military and police training and advice84. has used principal agent models to analyze the chain of delegation in current democracies87 and investigate the relationships between Congress. advice and assistance” and a supplier of military equipment and instructors85.com/uk/dci/presentation-dci. 1984.” The Journal of Political Economy 91: 5. and permanent offices in the United Arab Emirates. Delegation and accountability in parliamentary democracies.. consulting and assistance in both defence and domestic security sectors. Principal-Agent theory and the outsourcing of SSR After providing a short overview of the role played by the private sector in military training and security sector reform. DCI is considered as a “form of privatization of French military cooperation”86. Democratic theory.9% of the group's shares.has been much more wary to privatize any type of military of security functions. cit http://www. Barril Group and SAS. Although its traditional core activities consist of pushing forward major French armament exports. the company has gradually developed new areas of expertise: training. 1983. Bureaucracy Discretion or Congressional Control? Regulatory Policymaking by the Federal Trade Commission. the executive branch and the bureaucracy in the US88 or the EU multilevel governance89. Saudi Arabia. 765-800. principal-agent models have later on found application in the analysis of political forms of delegations and control. op.
). the lack of uncontested performance indicators in SSR and the complexity of the situation on the ground all make assessing the progress of the reform programme and the responsibility of contractors for failure difficult to assess.investigated the relationship between civilian principals and security forces by using principal-agent models90. The principal-agent approach and the study of the European Union: promise unfulfilled? 90 Feaver P. and some insights drawn on principal-agent analysis were also used to raise caveats on the use and the regulation of PMSCs91. Problems. Two prominent strands of analysis can be identified in principal-agent literature. which are often problematic when investigating political agents who are not profit-oriented. Wisebaden: Vs Verlag 92 Cohen J. Make or Buy? Principal-agent theory and the regulation of private military companies. The provision of SSR by private actors seems ideally suited for applying some principalagent insights. Armed Servants. cit. 2003. Cambridge: Harvard University Press 91 Cockayne J. therefore. Even SSR scholarly literature has already put forward principal-agent models as a methodology to map the relationship between the security agencies to be reformed and their political principals92. As a rule. When applied to assistance programmes. on the other hand. this assumption suggests a first caveat. Effective monitoring requires not only the presence of personnel on the ground. oversight and civil-military relations. Constant monitoring in a post-conflict environment can be costly and complex. Application of Principal-Agent Theory to Security Sector Reform. Agency. 2009. 2007. 2007 Contracting in the fog of war.. Journal of Security Sector Reform 7:2. agents are assumed to provide a service the way the principal deems it appropriate only when constantly monitored. 56
. This section. op. In its simplest form. but also the possession of all the types of expertise required to supervise the activities of contractors throughout the spectrum of SSR. The second strand of principal-agent research argues that monitoring is inherently inefficient and that optimal compliance comes from improving the quality of the agent and making its preferences more closely in line with
For a review see the articles of the Journal of European Public Policy 10 (1). the commercial nature of the agent simplifies the application of many principal-agent assumptions. Indeed. 1-17 93 Feaver. principal-agent analysis hypothesizes that agents work when monitored and shirk when not93. will use principal-agent insights to investigate the relationship between commercial providers of security sector reforms and the governmental agencies of both the donor and the host countries. in Chesterman and Lehnardt (eds). p. Pitfalls and Prospects. in Jäger e Kümmel. (eds. A caveat is however needed: the daunting complexity of SSR and the need to leave some room for human agency make principal agent analysis a valuable heuristic tool to make sense of the complexity of the process and generate hypotheses over the potential monitoring and accountability problems rather than a model to be systematically applied in order to predict agents’ behaviour and performances. Finally. Stober J. Private Military and Security Companies: Chances. The Rise and Regulation of Private military companies.
p.. p. 68
. The Private Military Company: an entity at the centre of overlapping spheres of commercial activity and responsibility. Adverse selection refers to the moment of hiring an agent: the principal cannot be fully aware of the capabilities and the preferences of the applicants. principals are assumed to be incapable of constantly observing the true behaviour of the agent. cannot be considered a given: given their huge use of third country and local personnel. the quality of the training personnel cannot be taken for granted. In addition. Problems. points at the activities of the agent once hired: no matter how much effort is put into monitoring. Strikingly. 61 96 Mancini 2005.). the preferences and the performance of the applicant. Private Military and Security Companies: Chances. governments should use their procurements consistently. 58 Ortiz C. (eds. however.those of the principal94.. in Jäger e Kümmel. nor is the quality of the training received by the former military personnel running the programme sufficient to guarantee the quality of the training services they will carry out in a host country and the success of an outsourced SSR program. the lack of reliable indicators of success and the often opaque nature of the private military and security industry further exacerbate these problems. The complexity of military assistance and SSR programmes. 2007. Moral hazard. actions can be taken to minimize the risks of adverse selection and moral hazard in SSR scenarios. governments and international organizations should establish blacklists for rogue companies and be more proactive in vetting companies and testing their credentials96. Wisebaden: Vs Verlag. in order for states’ demand to develop its potential as both an incentive and a deterrent so as to shape the behaviour of the industry. op. This. While the information asymmetry is inherent in principal-agent relationships and may be particularly acute and hazardous when the activity delegated to a commercial actor involves the transfer of military capacities and may affect millions of stakeholders. Pitfalls and Prospects. This can be done by using financial incentives and making sure that the organizational culture of the agent is compatible with the needs of the principal. cit. or insufficient vetting procedures of firms. The main risk inherent in any principal-agent relationship is that it is fraught with information asymmetries: the principal can never be completely sure of the capabilities. p. this was not always the case: PMSCs’ contracts were sometimes renewed even in spite of contractors’ poor performance
Ibid. In the case of PMSCS. Firstly. Two notions epitomize the constant information asymmetry that permeates the principal-agent relationship: adverse selection and moral hazard. the fact that their staff is largely composed by former Western military and security units has led some to suggests that it “has inherited routines in which established military practice and international law and custom are already contained” 95. on the other hand. taking into account companies’ good conduct as the major driver of contract awards and renewals.
auditing. and interest groups98. cit. are the first. a foreign government can directly contract out a reform programme to a Western PMSC to run some military programme. Police patrols can be complemented by a different type of monitoring: fire alarms. 7. crucial kind of supervision on agents’ activities. Outsourced SSR: delegation. op. reporting obligations. cit. a crucial fire alarm role can be played by the government receiving the training. McCubbins and Schwartz 1984. These actors can valuably complement official monitoring. but also by various civil society actors and both local and international NGOs operating in the host countries. Not only the planning and the implementation of military training and security sector reform are the outcome of a network of both governmental and non-governmental actors: so should also be the supervision of military assistance programs on the ground. provided that they are given the chance to communicate to the donor government. Firstly. Direct types of monitoring undertaken by the principal through inspections. The notion of fire alarms refers to the indirect supervision of agents undertaken by third parties. often referred to as police patrols. While this section has presented network analysis and drawn some preliminary caveats. systematic monitoring should also be ensured. contracts should specify detailed and meaningful performance evaluators to periodically assess firms’ progress.
Dickinson. two main types of arrangements between a public actor and a private firms offering security sector training and reform can be distinguished. In the case of military assistance. monitoring and accountability paths As mentioned above. possibly through embassies or consulates. such as media. civil society actors.and human rights violations. 97 Most importantly. the misbehaviour of the contractor.
. In addition. rival firms. op. Principal-agents analysis identifies two types of monitoring. the next pages will look more in detail at outsourced SSR arrangements and at their existing paths of supervision. in order to better prevent monitoring gaps and ensure greater local ownership in the SSR processes.
. however. Gurkha Security Guards)
The chart above shows the simplest type of outsourced military assistance principal-agent relationship: a government directly hires a PMSCs to train its military and security forces. whether officially or informally. 9 100 International Crisis Group 2009. The State Department thus acts as a veto player. HC 577 Private Military Companies: Options for Regulation 2001-2002 (London: The Stationery Office. Sierra Leone)
PMSC (Saladin. like that between Vinnell and Saudi Arabia in 1975. for instance.
United Kingdom Foreign and Commonwealth Office. and hence as an enabler of the contractual relationship. In addition. This was the case. 12 February 2002). Such a type of relationship can be summarized by the following chart. Firstly. PMSCs sometimes rely on some other firms as their subcontractors. this veto point can be easily circumvented. a further potential veto player comes to the fore. are rarely this simple. Africa Report N°148 – 13. when the Omani government hired Saladin to train its special forces or when the Sierra Leonean government contracted GSG to enhance the quality of its army and turn the tide of the fight against the RUF99. p. the abovementioned International Traffic In Arms Regulation makes the export of military services as well as goods conditional to the award of a license from the DoS Office of Defense Trade Controls. Outsourcing relationships. Liberia: Uneven Progress in Security Sector Reform. Hence. as Congress is also formally notified the contract: as abovementioned. In case of contracts exceeding the threshold of 50 million dollars. The bid submitted by PAE for the training and fielding of the Liberian armed forces also involved MPRI as a subcontractor100. In the US. a principal-agent relationship in the field of military assistance in its simplest form sees a host government as the principal and a PMSC as an agent. however. p.Chart 1: a government directly hires a PMSC
Foreign Government (Oman. the government of the country where the PMSC has its headquarters is often involved.
there is also a second. In that case. the activities of PMSCs on the ground depend on the authoritative decisions of their host government: hence. In addition. MPRI)
(only for contracts above 50 million $ )
It is worth mentioning that in some military assistance programs. which use it as a way to establish ties with foreign governments. the State Department lobbied actively to the Angolan government to replace the South African firm Executive Outcomes with the American firm MPRI101. However.Chart 2: foreign governments' reliance on US firms
State DoS
(Office of Defense Trade Control and other competent offices)
(Saudi Arabia. and is thus supported by home governments. Such a situation is only ostensibly similar to that of chart 1. Establishing a meaningful dialogue with local actors
Singer 2003.
. like Angola in 1996. the host country cannot be considered as just a passive recipient of reform for both normative and empirical reasons. reward allies and push forward their national interest. Like the armaments industry. While on legal and financial grounds the contractual relationship involves only the donor country and a private firm. which reminds that the local populations that are directly affected by a decision should be involved in the political process leading to that outcome. contractors cannot act independently of the government of the states where they operate. the private military services industry is seen as a strategic sector. at least through their representative institutions. op. cit. the government of the country where the company has its headquarters is not only a veto player. In some cases. it is the donor state that directly hires a PMSC with its military assistance or foreign aid budget to run a reform programme in a recipient country. Equatorial Guinea)
PMSC (Vinnell. not considering the host government as a second principal would be incompatible with normative democratic theory. Firstly. widespread type of contractual relationship between public actors and private firms offering military assistance.
. The use of private military contractors also blurs the transparency of the reform processes: US proprietary and federal acquisition law. p. however. given the need to consider the host government as a de facto second principal. is in danger of exacerbating this problem in at least two respects. the relationship between actors may thus be graphically summarized with a chart like the following. The abovementioned dilemma does not belong exclusively to the private provision of military assistance. but is inherent in the so called paradox of SSR: due to the intrinsic democratic deficit of external interventionism. In addition. both the Minister of Defense and some MPs were denied access to the contract. In the case of Liberia. To begin with. 132
. would be misleading. When a donor country outsources the provision of SSR to a private actor. It was widely held among Liberians. The tendency of PMSCs to outsource part of the programme to a subcontractor may create a further layer of unaccountability. In summary. cit. op. While states’ foreign ministry and development agencies are accountable at least to their electorate and subject to many types of international pressures. SSR in post-conflict settings like Liberia was authorized by warring parties and non-elected transitional governments. private firms are commercial entities that do not enjoy any form of political accountability even when they perform inherently political functions. allow both private firms and governmental agencies to refuse the disclosure of the contracts they sign.
Interviews with DoS Officials Broszka. starting from the host government. the initial consent of the host government may imply signing a blank cheque if the host country has no control whatsoever over the means of SSR implementation. The outsourcing to PMSCs was an unilateral decision of the State Department take stakeholders came to know only in 2005. and proved to be very unsatisfied with. Privatized military training. Concluding that accountability and transparency gaps should hence be seen as a non-issue. SSR and military assistance programmes can be implemented only with the consent of the host government.on the goals and the means of policy implementation. host governments often agree without having any authority or voice on the way assistance will be delivered. however. that the rebuilding of the AFL would have been carried out by US uniformed personnel.102. programmes aimed at establishing more responsive and accountable security forces can be implemented only by violating the very democratic principles they promote103. To be sure. for instance. is thus crucial for any programme to succeed.
answering to two clients – the donor and the recipient”104. can more appropriately be referred to as the divided principal problem105. op. such a situation may. the agent will be able to magnify its room of manoeuvre and behave less responsibly: it may. well known to principal-agent analysis. as abovementioned. cit. Exploratory studies on the private provision of SSR confirm this by observing that “contractors find themselves playing a ‘janusian’ game. and there is a danger that they become the agents of unwanted change. Ithaca. The divided principal problem is. p. however. 106 Ibid. This type of relationship. as the two principals often have different preferences and expectations.Chart 3: SSR program outsourced by a donor country
Donor State (United States) Host state (Liberia)
PMSC (Dyncorp)
PMSC (PAE)
Such a situation may create additional problems. or take advantage of their conflicting preferences to push forward its own agenda107. breed problems and inefficiencies. This may indeed be true and problematic: in order for SSR providers to run successful programmes. 1994. while hierarchically subordinate. more complex. It has been noted that it is often difficult for contractors “to navigate through these different or conflicting interests. NY: Cornell University Press. play its two principals one against another. Social network analysis provides similar insights. An agent with two principals. the host government and the main civil society actors. such as the legislative and the executive branches of government. according to principal-agent assumptions. 19 107 Avant D.
. The literature on democratic delegation and civil-military relations observes that in a situation of divided principals.. finds itself at the centre of a network. for instance. Political Institutions and Military Change: Lessons from Peripheral Wars. While sometimes required for the sake of democratic principles. PMSCs have to seek the cooperation with and active support of the institutions to be reformed. delivering the wishes of donors without the consent of recipient governments”106. and is therefore in the
Mancini 2006. 66 Feaver. p. The principal-agent dyad is often made more complex by the occurrence that the agent may have to respond to two different actors.
As suggested by Avant.000 deaths and 1. the civil war in Liberia finally drew to a close with the signature in Accra of a Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA). whose armed forces were trained and fielded by the two PMSCs Dyncorp and PAE. By the CPA. and mention the actors to be involved in the SSR process by stating that
See for instance Christopoulos D. see also Malan M. and try to apply some further insights drawn on principal-agent theory. with law enforcement and military forces being massively involved in war crimes and human rights violations110.army. Journal of European Public Policy 13:5. Relational attributes of political entrepreneurs: a network perspective 2006.org/TMP/1064522.html 112 United Nations Security Council. 109 Next sections will provide a more fine-grained analysis of the case of Liberia. p. URL http://www. 125 110 US Agency for International Development (USAID).. 2008.un. URL http://daccess-ods. 7.3 millions of displacements. 15th Progress report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Mission in Liberia. strong of over 15. contractors and the recipient government may both have an interest to show progress in the training programme so as to please the donor and make the money keep flowing although no actual progress is being made. the parties requested the United Nations to deploy a peacekeeping force to Liberia and assist the implementation of the peace agreement111. Double principal situations may also be characterized by another problem: the possibility for the agent to collude with one of the principals.cfm?pubID=85
.000 combatants112. helped the stabilization of the country and carried out a DDRR process entailing the disarmament of over 100. Overview of Activities in Liberia. the UNMIL mission. the donor agency disclose the contractual term and remains in constant contact with the host government.position to enjoy a further epistemic advantage by strategically controlling information and act as a broker between the preferences of each of its principals108.
8.mil/pubs/display. The CPA also explicitly envisioned the establishment of a SSR program. Security Sector Reform in Liberia: Mixed Results from Humble Beginnings. Articles VII and VIII of Part Four of the CPA declare that “the Armed Forces of Liberia shall be restructured and will have a new command structure”. Document No.strategicstudiesinstitute. S/2007/479. 757–778 109 Avant 2005.000 personnel. Established in September 2003 by the UNSC Resolution 1509. 4 May 2004 111 United Nations Security Council Resolution 1509. SSR in Liberia In August 2003. Fourteen years of conflict had produced over 250.41539955. It is hence important that besides monitoring the agent. 8 August 2007.
with UN police officers (UNPOL) working alongside the UN peacekeeping force (UNMIL) to restructure. As of the reform of the military. cit. Such a situation. AU and ICGL [International Contact Group on Liberia] provide advisory staff. together with the massive reliance on well paid. In 1962. whose training and structure were made closer to those of modern military forces. the DoS decided to split the contract. followed by an expert’s assessment in May. with the rest of the AFL and the police were being marginalized and often left unpaid. UN. p.
With the resolution 1509. pledging to assist the transitional government of Liberia to reform the police force in a way consistent to democratic principles. only Dyncorp and PAE were allowed to submit bids. the State Department decided to fully contract out the task of reconstituting the AFL and MoD by tendering a request for proposals.“ ECOWAS. In spite of its authoritarian nature. Its ethnicization and politicization. where a first embryonic military force. awarding to Dyncorp the vetting
International Crisis Group 2009. persisted unaltered. however. SSR officially started in 2004. equipment. the Liberian Frontier Force. The United States. 2 McFate. op. the policy of ethnicization persisted. When Charles Taylor took over power.
. ethnic unbalance and corruption dates back to its first establishment in 1908. Doe’s regime received massive supplies of weapons and military assistance from US and Israeli forces. the Frontier Force was replaced by the Liberian Armed Forces. cit. lack of professionalism. Following the assessment mission. on the other hand. and re-equip the police. As the two winners of the AFRICAP umbrella contract. the US Department of State organised an initial assessment trip in January 2004. Hence. logistics and experienced trainers for the security reform efforts. Irregularly paid. op. when uniformed personnel from the DoD and contractors from Dyncorp and Engineers visited the country114. made a comprehensive reform of both the military and the police force paramount113. was created to control the borders. together with the legacy of atrocities of the civil war. Not only the Liberian armed forces had committed massive human rights abuses when both Doe and Taylor were in charge: its tradition of politicization. the UN also took over the responsibility of training the Liberian police. DOD concluded it could not conduct the SSR programme owing to resource constraints. After reviewing the two bids. The parties also request that the United States of American play a lead role in organizing this restructuring program”. largely stemming from US commitments in Iraq and Afghanistan. retrain. the AFL came to be dominated by the president’s Krahn tribe. the Liberian Frontier Force was encouraged to pay itself through racket and looting.. praetorian-style Special Operation Forces such as the Anti-Terrorist Unit. After Samuel Doe’s military coup in 1980. would provide the human and financial resources needed for the reform of the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL).
2004. its total value is known to be around 240 million dollars115. according to the RAND report. and a Coastal Guard. In addition. Secretary of Defense. previously characterized by duplications and overlaps. Sustainment Budget: New Armed Forces of Liberia. op. 2009. Liberia could develop the capability throughout the spectrum of security threats while having an affordable force structure. 121 Author’s interview with US uniformed personnel
. MPRI carried out a study for the US Department of Defense on the financial viability and the costs of the AFL to be built118. it is also worth noting that the non-governmental and commercial sectors were already involved in the designing of the programme before contractors’ assessment trips. 117 Malan.” Report prepared for the Office of the U. but also the QRU. While the terms of the contract were never disclosed.. In 2004. an elite police unit which could address major domestic threats and support the military in case of national security emergency. already envisaged by the MPRI report and the US DoD.and the training of the AFL and to PAE the fielding and mentorship of the new force.: MPRI. given its very small size. Considerations of affordability were crucial given the propensity of unpaid military forces to turn themselves into a major threat for the state apparatus120. p. while the contractors in charge of the training have left the country in December 2009. started in 2004. In addition. the architecture of the new AFL is largely depended on the recommendations of a report written for the Office of the Secretary of Defense by the Rand Corporation119. 28 118 Military Professional Resources. Inc. was built directly by the US Office of Security Cooperation military personnel in Monrovia. While the personnel deployed on the ground varied over time. it suggested to complement a small and therefore affordable AFL consisting of a 2. and often considered as “the most controversial aspect”117 of the SSR program. DoD Uniformed Personnel and representatives of the industry Ibid. Alexandria. there are
Author’s interviews with DoS Officials. RAND Corporation. Va. 2007 120 Ibid. Gompert et al. The Coast Guard on the other hand. cit. with a Quick Reaction Police Unit. While the involvement of Dyncorp and PAE in the training and fielding of the new AFL is well-known. “Making Liberia Safe: Transformation of the National Security Sector. Indeed. with few other hundreds employees carrying out support functions116. RAND’s recommendations were strictly followed in the planning and the implementation of the SSR programme. The military reform process. This way. The Rand report recommended the simplification and rationalization of the force structure. should not be considered as complete yet. and sent to complete their training into US bases121. Dyncorp was assigned the task to train not only the AFL.000 strong mechanized infantry brigade to be rebuilt from scratch. it involved approximately between 200 and 300 American or US army trained contractors. 119 David C.S.
124 Ibid. such as civil society. given the Embassy’s strain on personnel and lack of expertise in military matters. with NGOS helping the rehabilitation and reintegration process. demobilization of the legacy force. the demobilization of former AFL members. had not yet been demobilized. according to then Dyncorp programme manager Sean McFate. recruiting and vetting and finally training and fielding of the new AFL123. former warring parties and political factions. op. Office of Defense Cooperation Chiefs and Representatives of the private military and security industry
.now DoS funded AFRICOM uniformed personnel mentoring the newly established force. in particular chairman Bryant and the provisional Minister of Defence. Dyncorp played a de facto crucial and direct role in the consultations between the donor and the host governments. involving the demobilization of the legacy force. with some Dyncorp contractors still on the field for bases and equipment maintenance122. the US Embassy had to act as an interface between the contractors and the transitional government first and the elected government after the elections held in 2005. The legacy force. training and fielding of the AFL. The solution adopted in consultation with the DoS was arranging the demobilisation payments for all 13. Hence. op. cit. Consultation with the Transitional government and SSR providers continued throughout the process. The SSR programme in Liberia can be divided into four phases: political consultations with stakeholders. they ended up playing a significant role in each stage of the SSR process. the UNMIL command and ECOMOG124. The UN had disarmed and started demobilizing the rebels.770 AFL soldiers
Author’s interviews to DoS officials McFate. fell on contractors.. Other stakeholders were also involved. the Embassy Office of Defense Cooperation Chief and the African Bureau personnel in Washington. The information asymmetry inherent in any principal-agent relationship was worsened by expertise gap of US officials: the Office of Defence Chief in the period between August 2005 and July 2007 was a US Navy officer with no experience on the training of ground forces125. See also Ebo. a sensitive task that could trigger further destabilization and turmoil. and the TGL. much of the dayto-day exchange of views and information occurred directly between contractors and Liberian authorities. As a consequence. While Dyncorp contractors were originally intended to carry out only the recruiting. During that phase. However. the standing AFL. Dyncorp contractors deployed in the country after the start of DoS funding in March 2004 had found the demobilization process still incomplete. without any US government filter.. As of the second phase. vetting. however. cit. 125 Author’s interviews to DoS Officials. The designing of the new AFL was largely the outcome of bilateral negotiations between the US State Department and in particular the US Ambassador.
128 Author’s interviews
. headed by the Office of Defense Cooperation Chief. 648 Malan. 105 civilian
McFate. Dyncorp was also assigned the task of buying the arms to field the soldiers to be trained. as the company refused to disclose to the TRC their investigation reports. Such a choice was a conscious decision that SSR providers as well as their US supervisors justify on two grounds. the Ministry of Defense and the Dean of the Law School. the need to build a legitimate and trustworthy military. further confirming the quality of the vetting process128.. Due to the legacy of atrocities in the country. Indeed. Before the training started. and forced most contractors deployed in the country to remain idle until additional US funds were allocated. using their vetting records for Transitional Justice purposes would have given contractors a de facto police investigation role they were not mandated for and not willing to play. the lack of the required funding produced a huge delay in the training process. Only very few of the short listed candidates were rejected. the vetting process can be considered as a highly demanding and largely successful tasks. In August 2006. p. op. To carry out a comprehensive vetting process. the huge number of applicants. rejection rates for AFL candidates were 82%. which occurred without major incidents. In addition. First. However. Dyncorp sought to establish direct communication channels with individual stakeholders by distributing posters with applicants’ photographs and a call-in number where people could anonymously lodge accusations of wrongdoing that would later on be investigated by contractors’ investigation team. The contract between the State Department and Dyncorp also made contractors responsible of the training and recruiting of the AFL. prevent new waves of violence and avoid compromising the effectiveness of their vetting methods. This solution eased the demobilization process. Dyncorp sought the cooperation of local NGOS and established an investigation team who systematically visited the villages of AFL candidates so as to confirm their identity and shed light on their past. so as to representing both donor and host governments and local civil society127. cit. While Dyncorp sought the mutual cooperation of the host government and local civil society. investigators wanted their records to remain classified so as to protect witnesses from reprisals.and more than 400 ministry employees126. the final decision over the admission of the candidates was made by a Joint Personnel Board. Rejection rates prove the magnitude of vetting efforts. op. In March and September 2007 respectively. the vetting process triggered some friction with the newly established Truth and Reconciliation Commission. cit. While DynCorp’s investigation team short listed the candidate by vetting the applicants. In addition. the UN arms embargo on Liberia was lifted and the first shipment of arms reached the country.
These caveats notwithstanding. to some extent unavoidable when a new army rebuilt from scratch.. three problems can be raised. This situation. Finally. such a type of training should have been central in the reform process. cit. 13 Author’s interviews. As of September 2008. 133 Author’s interviews with Office of Defense Cooperation Chiefs 134 Author’s interviews with DoS Officials
. op. the duration of the IET training was shortened from eleven to eight weeks by cutting three weeks that were devoted to human rights. On the contrary. 131 McFate. fraught with inconsistencies and lack of funding130.. however. especially in comparison to the vetting and training of the police carried out by the UN. However. The development of AFL autonomous training capacity was also delayed as the unit in charge of training was one the last to be trained133. DynCorp had conducted four NCO courses.. The positive outcome of the programme. cit.personnel of the Ministry of Defence accomplish their training classes and 630 AFL rookies finished their eight weeks Initial Entry Training. op. given the proven potential of commercial actors and the high likelihood that the experience of Liberia will encourage greater reliance on the commercial sector. SSR in Liberia can be considered according to most efforts as a provisional success. due to delays and lack of funding. civil-military relations and laws of war131. While the AFL has not yet been tested against any actual threat. cit.. op. cit. As human rights respect lies at the core of SSR and human rights violations were widespread among the former AFL. at 650 132 Ibid. International Crisis Group. 2. analyzing the paths of monitoring and accountability of commercial actors carrying out SSR should be seen as crucial. in spite of their training. and only time will confirm its effectiveness and accountability. By the end of June 2008. under the supervision of contractors and ECOMOG officials. See also Malan. op. most authors agree that its rebuilding from scratch can be considered to date as a provisional success. op. Firstly and most importantly. training 227 candidates but only 33 had been commissioned132. the new Ministry of Defense personnel still lacks the standard operating procedures and the bureaucratic routines that are crucial for ensuring both rule of law and operational effectiveness134.113 soldiers were provided with the IET basic training129. cit.
International Crisis Group. should not lead scholars and practitioners to overlook the potential problems and dilemmas that may arise from the relationship between public principals and commercial agents carrying military and police assistance. p. Their training would proceed once assigned to their military unit. is however in danger of compromising its operational effectiveness. In addition. See also Ebo. the AFL still lacks a competent official corps.
change and terminate contracts. they often lack the knowledge of the contractual environment and of the broader US needs and foreign policy goals. For this reasons. award. URL 136 S. According to US Federal Acquisition Regulation. however. Roles and Responsibility in the contracting process.S. 6
. appointed by the DoS Procurement Executive135. advice. for the sake of operational effectiveness and local ownership. to engage in a constant dialogue with local stakeholders. sign. Role and Responsibilities in the contracting process. As a type of SSR program outsourced to contractors by a donor country. negotiate. specialized in Western Africa. the U. Department of State Foreign Affairs Handbook Volume 14 Handbook 2—Contracting Officer’s Representative. another individual among the Department of State personnel is designated as contracting officer's representatives (CORs).9. Firstly. private actors were involved both in the planning and the implementation phase of the program.
U. p. and assists her in the management and supervision of the contract136. The Contracting Officer is the only person who can formally solicit proposal. aiding the COR in the evaluation of a contractor’s performance. as in the case of SSR programmes. While depending only on the State Department on legal and financial grounds. the case of Liberia should be considered as a de facto double principal problem. Department of State Foreign Affairs Handbook Volume 14 Handbook 2—Contracting Officer’s Representative 14 FAH-2 H-110. starting from the government of Liberia. however. which distinguishes two types of relationships between actors: delegation and supervision. Principal-Agent problems: the case of Liberia As abovementioned. This individual is called a government technical monitor (GTM)137. US contractors had. the COR is not authorized to make changes to the contract or commit the US government. Government is bound only by an individual who has been delegated contracting authority: the Contracting Officer. US government’s contracting procedures need to be analyzed. 1 137 DoS.S. p. In such cases where the supervision of a contract requires physical proximity or technical expertise (or. may be ill suited to monitor programmes that take place overseas and require a high degree of technical expertise like SSR. While Contracting Officers has the legal authority and the expertise to manage contracts. the contracting officer representative was a DoS Official from the African Bureau. The COR is the “eyes and ears” of the contracting officer. A GTM may be appointed to provide technical monitoring. While being the direct overseer of contractors. and assistance. both) the Contracting Officer “may appoint an individual to assist the contracting officer’s representative in monitoring a contractor’s performance. Both the Contracting Officer and the Contracting Officer Representative. The contractual and monitoring relationship between contractors and US government agencies could hence be summarized with a chart of this type. In the case of SSR in Liberia.
the only official with the authority to make changes to the contract and take measures against contractors. inspections and quality controls. much of the day-to-day monitoring of contractors fell on US Army ODCs. The COR would then report to the Contracting Officer. while the Contracting Officer is the ultimate principal. Evidence suggests that this was not the case in Liberia. According to the US DoS. this system of separating the duties of the contracting activity provides for a system of checks and balances for better overall control of the contracting process138. ODC chiefs carried out a strong supervision through auditing.S. Department of State Foreign Affairs Handbook Volume 14 Handbook 2—Contracting Officer’s Representative. ODC chiefs remained in the country for a period of two years at best. p. the Contracting Officer Representative herself repeatedly visited the country. Due to Department of Defense turnovers. 1 139 Author’s interviews
. Given their constant presence on the ground and their technical expertise.Chart 4: Monitoring relationship in Liberia
Contracting COR
GTM (ODC Chiefs) Dyncorp PAE
In summary. 14 FAH-2 H-120. the responsibility to monitor the contract is delegated to the Contracting Officer Representative. helped by a Government Technical Manager in the person of the DoD Office of Defense Cooperation chiefs in Monrovia. and effective teamwork and constant exchange of information made DoS personnel capable of performing effective monitoring on the activities of Dyncorp contractors. new ODCs needed time to get acquainted with the contractual environment and
U. The Acquisition Environment. In addition. However. and was in contract with PMSCs’ officials both in the field and in their headquarters in Washington DC139. such a system may also produce delays or loss of information if the supervision chain does not function properly. While instructed by their predecessors. who reported their findings to the COR on a weekly basis at least. Two potential problems are however worth some attention. talking to both contractors and the Liberian Minister of Defense and stakeholders.
. An additional problem may have been the contract itself. however. In addition. The five-years long AFRICAP umbrella-contract was awarded to two firms only. rewarding good performance and punishing non-compliance. this holds true only insofar as the governmental customer can choose among different players and proves capable of using its customer power effectively. some may have alienated the willingness of local actors to cooperate. the entire supervision process depended on a person who. spoiled the feeling of local ownership and created a precedent of secrecy and lack of transparency that is clearly at odds with the rationale of the entire SSR programme. This is to some extent in the nature of Indefinite Delivery – Indefinite Quantity contracts used in contingency situations. training and fielding. was not in the best position to supervise ground forces recruiting. The risk of collusion between contractors and host government emphasized by Avant does not seem to have taken place in Liberia. where local actors were often in a tense relationship with contractors. While none of these seems to date to have altogether compromised the effectiveness of the programme. In such a situation. While this ensures greater flexibility. that proved more difficult and fraught with problems. The low level of competition for peacekeeping support in Africa and of the private military and security industry in general weakens the effectiveness of public demand as a tool of control. which is paramount in such a complex environment. Dyncorp and PAE could better avoid the simplistic application of US army templates to the making
International Crisis Group. According to McFate. allowing Dyncorp to be more responsive to local stakeholders’ requests. as abovementioned. While it is widely held in the literature on industrial relations that public demand is a very effective tool in the regulation of a market. distinct from both the donor and the host government. p. While never disclosed to the public and even to the Liberian government. various interviewees who saw the contract described it as a three pages long. Because of their lack of bureaucratic standard operating procedures. one of these ODCs was a US Navy officer.their supervision role. op. contractors’ unique position. because of its background. cit. 34
. quite vague document that left huge autonomy to contractors140. which made meaningful competition impossible and makes the deterrent of breaking the existing contract or not awarding new procurements to a delinquent firm less credible. A further weakness may arise from the broader DoS outsourcing policy in Africa. may have produced also positive effects. It is the relationship between contractors and host government and stakeholders. or not be capable of assessing the SSR programme in its entirety. The previous paragraphs tried to briefly show some potential problems in US monitoring of PMSCS. the lack of adequate terms of reference contractors’ performance makes supervision difficult and produces inefficiencies.
and sometimes managed to engage in a successful dialogue with local actors. and found themselves in a better position to accommodate stakeholders’ demands. They reported to an entity that was visible and to whom they were accountable. created a sense of secrecy that went contrary to the culture of openness and accountability that is meant to characterize SSR programmes. customs and laws”143. op. the refusal to disclose the contract prevented the Liberians from having any term of reference to assess contractors’ performance. seeking for instance the cooperation of local NGOs in the vetting process. governmental actors were frustrated with the lack of transparency and information over the content of the contract: every local actor. In addition. op. and. Firstly. discouraged by the US DoD141.. In the case of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. could have alienated local actors and played against the establishment on local ownership on the SSR process. They consulted with local institutions and worked closely with the Ministry of Defence at every step. In most cases. while defensible on some grounds. 22 May
. as abovementioned.
McFate. They were transparent in their dealings with the Liberian government and they showed respect for local authorities. however.of the AFL. either by direct communication with Dyncorp representatives or through the Office of Defense Cooperation Chief and some changes to the contract were made to accommodate the Minister’s requests. cit. comprising the Ministrer of Defense and some MPs were refused to see the contractual terms because of US proprietary information law. According to Ebo. the dialogue with NGOs was also difficult because DynCorp’s reputation and previous activities. While Liberians were kept updated on the activity of contractors. p. Most importantly. the relationship with the Liberian elected government was not easy for at least two factors.. this dialogue was not without friction. This allowed Liberians to successfully obtain the inclusion of women into infantry units. 163
The Perspective. a decision on which they had no control. the Defence Minister Samukai as well as president Sirleaf were unsatisfied in principle with the US’ decision’s to use contractors rather than American uniformed personnel. 651-652 Ebo. Minister Brownie Samukai Discusses Liberia SSR in US. According to the Defence Minister. the US active duty military personnel who were training Liberian medics while contractors were training the AFL
“did not look into their bank account every day to find out if funds had been made available or not to undertake the next level of activities. p. “placed the company on the defensive and acted as a disincentive to close collaboration with civil society”142. most importantly. evidence shows that contractors in Liberia were well aware of the need to cooperate with local stakeholders. heavily criticized by humanitarian actors. 2007. Dyncorp explicitly refused to cooperate. Indeed. a decision that. cit.
as tools of moral persuasion that may help dissuading coups. on the other hand. 2008. Informal connections between US officials and their counterpart in a developing countries can be used as a source of intelligence and. The employment of contractors conveyed a wrong message to Liberians. Lessons Not Learned: Contracting Out Iraqi Army Advising. op. Indeed. Conclusions This paper has provided an overview of the role of the commercial sector in the planning. funding and implementation of military assistance and SSR. cit. the Brookings Institution
. Department of State has shown remarkable insensitivity by sending in contractors to shape the new army”144. By doing so. Contractors cannot be considered as mercenaries on either formal or substantial grounds145. as shown by the words of the Liberian Minister of Defense. First. while focusing in particular on the provision of training by private military and security companies. was not the case for contractors. 69 See Singer 2003. SSR in Liberia was among DoS top priorities in Africa. Whether correct or not. suggesting that their country was not important enough to justify the employment of active duty military personnel as trainers. however. it tried to preliminarily fill the existing gap existing in the literature on both private military companies and SSR by exploring the role of PMSCs in military assistance with both a
Malan.S. can be considered as important for another reason too.. p. perceptions are hardly trivial in international politics. cit.. Nevertheless. op. the services provided by contractors were nearly identical to the training that would been provided had US soldiers been employed146. the use of uniformed personnel in post-conflict and transitional settings. it intended to achieve three objectives.For profit training carried out by the civilian personnel of a commercial firm is unlikely to have the same effects.This. According to DoS sources. or encourage further progress towards greater accountability and human rights respect147. Avant 2005 146 Author’s interviews 147 On the importance of ties among US and foreign military personnel see for instance Singer P. it still holds true that their employment is often a sensitive issues that some local actors may not be willing to accept. It was noted that “in a country and region where recent history has been shaped by warlords and mercenaries. most importantly. the U. Local actors were against the use of contractors simply because they found the employment of US uniformed personnel as more prestigious that the use of a PMSC.W. Foreign military training is seen as the main way to establish and maintain formal and informal military ties that can later on be used as a tool of foreign policy influence. Liberians’ dissatisfaction with contractors was largely a matter of perceptions. In addition.
Second. to be completed in the next months with the in-depth analysis of additional case studies and a comprehensive fieldwork. this brief overview of the role of PMSCs in security sector reform should be seen as a work in progress. Finally. it tried to flesh out the notion of security networks by presenting the different types of public-private arrangements and networked forms of coordination that characterize military assistance policies in different countries. While the case of SSR in Liberia.general overview and an in-depth case study.
. presented in this pages. so as to better investigate the potential as well as the problem associated with the reliance on and the monitoring of PMSCS and their acceptance by local actors. Indeed. can be seen as a watershed in SSR and provide valuable insights. it needs to be complemented with the analysis of other outsourced programmes. it briefly showed the potential of network analysis as a valuable heuristic tool to provide greater theoretical sophistication to the analysis of the relationship between PMSCs and both donor and host countries as well as generate hypotheses on the advantages and potential problems and accountability gaps that may arise from the outsourcing of military assistance.
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