Accessibility statement

The Demobilisation of Private Military Contractors

Coalition military and peacekeeping operations in Iraq and Afghanistan have been conducted using an unprecedented number of private military contractors engaged in a range of activities from frontline counter-insurgency to backroom logistics. It has been estimated by that when Coalition Forces entered Kuwait in 1991 there was 1 private military contractor for every 100 soldiers. When US and UK troops crossed over the border into Iraq in 2003 the ratio was 1:10. By 2008 it had reached 1:1. This shift in the conduct of warfare and peacekeeping operations has generated a sizeable literature on dynamics of private military contractors, exploring their strategic, legal and moral implications in hostile environments.  Yet notably absent throughout this literature is the question of what happens after the conflict.  Now that coalition military operations are being continuously downsized, many of these contractors – like many soldiers – are going through the process of demobilisation. Our knowledge of how soldiers and contractors demobilise is very different, however. While the demobilisation of soldiers is an open and managed process centred upon state-funded reintegration programmes and extensive charitable support, virtually nothing is known about the demobilisation of private military contractors. The aim of this project is to undertake the first study of contractor demobilisation.

Dr White has been awarded an Research Fellowship from the Gerda Henkel Foundation to pursue this project.

Research Starts: 01/09/2014

Research Ends: 31/08/2016