The Geopolitical Foundations of Blackwater

This week in the Special Outside the Box, good friend George Friedman addresses the lax governance and control of Blackwater, a private security firm recently embroiled in the accusation of firing upon Iraqi civilians without provocation. George shows us that private security contractors' working beside the military is not a recent mode of operation but rather one that has long been employed by the US military.

Furthermore, that private security firms serve a necessary role in US military operations and will continue to be a tool utilized in military operations throughout the world. Elsewhere, Stratfor notes that it is the Diplomatic Security Service that is usually responsible for the protection of diplomats. But there are only 1,400 of the officers world wide. You need more than that just for Iraq. We simply do not have the manpower to protect all the diplomats in Iraq and elsewhere without private contractors. It is just a fact of life. But as George notes, they are not in the chain of command. Resolving this is very important, as you will read.

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