Private Military and Security Companies in UN Missions

Nowadays individuals have a leading role in global politics. Among its most visible consequences the concepts of human security and the securitization of development emerge. Based on the above, there is a growing tendency to opposing individuals with individuals in complex missions where security is at stake. Not only are states outsourcing specific services related to the provision of training and security for facilities and officers to protect their interests abroad, but the UN as well as other multilateral and humanitarian organizations have also started to contract the multinationals of violence. Hence, private military and security companies are no longer shadow forces in current conflicts: they are the new legitimized partner for complex missions all over the world. The goal of this essay is then to account for the grounds and paradoxes of this progressive trend. Adapted from the source document.