Overview
- Offers the first comprehensive treatment of PMSC presence in the land, sea, and air settings
- Provides an interdisciplinary approach employing international relations theory, sociology, security studies, and state military concepts and history
- Argues that PMSCs are framed to offer services that are reliant on human labour rather than on sophisticated technologies
Part of the book series: New Security Challenges (NSECH)
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Table of contents (7 chapters)
Keywords
About this book
Reviews
“Christopher Spearin takes a novel approach to the long-held question of the respective monopolies on force of private military and security companies versus states: through an assessment of the ideational and functional boundaries of what states and these firms do and possess, respectively, with regard to violence. To do so, Spearin adeptly employs normative reasoning, and considers the role of technology and the ability to operate defensively versus offensively in framing the operational distinctions between state militaries and private forces. The result is a significant contribution to the on-going debate regarding the distinctions between, and interactions of, states and private military and security companies across different operational milieu: on land, in the air, and in a maritime environment.” (Molly Dunigan, Senior Political Scientist, RAND Corporation, USA)
“Spearin has produced an impressive account of the emergence and boundaries of today’s PMSC market. A clear strength of the book is Spearin’s thorough analysis of the historical development of the current PMSC-phenomenon, avoiding the sensationalistic neo-medievalism trap, yet laying bare the crucial technological and social forces shaping today’s market. For everyone interested in the topic, Spearin’s original conclusions about the organization of commercial force, its close relation to the state, and his timely policy implications on the role of PMSC in conflict, make the book a profitable read.” (Ulrich Petersohn, Senior Lecturer in International Politics, University of Liverpool, UK)
Authors and Affiliations
About the author
Christopher Spearin is Associate Professor of Defence Studies at the Royal Military College of Canada/Canadian Forces College.
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: Private Military and Security Companies and States
Book Subtitle: Force Divided
Authors: Christopher Spearin
Series Title: New Security Challenges
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-54903-3
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan Cham
eBook Packages: Political Science and International Studies, Political Science and International Studies (R0)
Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2017
Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-319-54902-6Published: 14 August 2017
Softcover ISBN: 978-3-319-85515-8Published: 03 August 2018
eBook ISBN: 978-3-319-54903-3Published: 02 August 2017
Series ISSN: 2731-0329
Series E-ISSN: 2731-0337
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: XII, 229
Topics: Military and Defence Studies, International Security Studies