Saturday, June 12, 2010
Strategy: The Eight Imperatives Of COIN, By General Stanley McChrystal
Friday, June 11, 2010
Publications: ISW–Consolidating Private Security Companies In Southern Afghanistan, By Kimberly Kagan And Carl Forsberg
One of the problems I have with this paper is that a government should embrace the power of private enterprise and the free markets, and find ways of using these security companies to only help in their war time strategy. This paper operates on the assumption that the state has to have a monopoly on force in the first place, and I don’t think this is correct. It seems that CNAS has recognized that we shouldn’t assume this either, and I think the ISW should reconsider this point of the paper. The state should not be afraid to use private security, and instead should be thankful that a company would even serve in this capacity for the state.
Now how they serve the state is dependent upon the contract/war strategy and how much effort the government puts into ensuring they get a good deal. You have to care if you want a good service, and caring means monitoring, regulating, and enforcing, or what I like to refer to as a ‘trust, but verify’ attitude. It is a lesson that the US must learn(or any country for that matter), and it is a lesson that the Afghan government must learn, if in fact they want to take advantage of the strengths of private industry(wealth building, innovation, employment, etc.) and be a player on the world stage.
Check out the paper and let me know what you think. –Matt
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Consolidating Private Security Companies in Southern Afghanistan
May 28, 2010
By Kimberly Kagan and Carl Forsberg
This backgrounder outlines the complex relationship between private security companies and ISAF in southern Afghanistan.
Introduction
Dozens of Private Security Companies (PSCs) operate in Kandahar city and province, frequently doubling as the militias of local powerbrokers. These armed groups also operate on a contractual basis to provide security for the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and private, Afghan companies. Because PSCs are under the control of powerful individuals, rather than the Afghan National Security Forces, they compete with state security forces and interfere with a government monopoly on the use of force. There is growing pressure from ISAF and within the Afghan government to reform and regulate these companies. Major General Nick Carter, the commander of Regional Command-South (RC-S), recently briefed that ISAF was developing a strategy to regulate PSCs as part of the Kandahar Operations unfolding in summer 2010.1
If not properly structured, however, the regulation of these PSCs in Kandahar may reinforce the existing power structures, strengthen the hand of local powerbrokers such as Ahmed Wali Karzai, and further weaken the ANSF. An initiative underway to consolidate the security companies in southern Afghanistan is likely to exacerbate the problems caused by PSCs, rather than reducing their influence.
Download the publication here.
Link to webpage here.
Afghanistan: The True Face Of The Taliban, And Their Hatred Of Children
I think I will let the articles below speak for themselves. Using children as suicide bombers or hanging 7 year old kids in public? Pffft. I have no respect for an enemy that uses children like this, and this is Lords Resistance Army material here. –Matt
Edit: 06/12/2010- Oh, and now the Taliban is using poison gas on children. These guys are pathetic.
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Young Afghan suicide bomber approached wedding guests
‘Everyone immediately tried to escape,’ one guest said. But the boy’s suicide vest detonated, killing more than 40 and wounding at least 80, said a police chief who witnessed the attack.
By Alex Rodriguez, Los Angeles Times
June 11, 2010
Reporting from Kabul, Afghanistan
The boy, dressed in white and thought to be no older than 13, appeared amid the din of a wedding party in a small southern Afghan village and walked up to within 15 feet of a cluster of tables where everyone was eating. As he prepared to detonate his suicide bomb vest, the gathering flew into a panic.”Everyone immediately tried to escape,” said Abdullah Jan, a guest at the wedding. But there was no time.The boy’s suicide vest packed with explosives detonated, killing more than 40 people and wounding at least 80, said Zemarai Khan, a local police chief who was at the wedding and witnessed the attack.Carried out late Wednesday in a small village in Kandahar province, the attack underscored the vulnerability of Afghan society even as President Hamid Karzai pursues negotiations with Taliban insurgents who have waged war with his government and Western forces for nearly nine years.The Taliban has scoffed at Karzai’s peace offer and has carried out a wave of deadly attacks since the Afghan leader convened a national peace conference in Kabul, the capital, last week aimed at establishing a framework for talks with the insurgency.The bombing of the wedding in the village of Nagahan in the Arghandab district was the deadliest of those attacks. The bomber, who witnesses said was 12 or 13, targeted a housing compound where men and young boys were celebrating the wedding, authorities said. Female guests were in a different area. The groom was injured but survived, Jan said. His brother was killed. (more…)
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Jobs: Close Protection Officers/Team Leaders, OCONUS
Another job that requires the SIA license, which indicates to me that they are probably just looking for UK guys. But hey, if you have the SIA license and you meet the requirements below, by all means apply no matter where you are from. I am not the POC or recruiter for this job and follow the link below if you would like to apply. Good luck and let me know how it goes. –Matt
Edit: 06/10/2010- The positions are now closed.
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Position: Frontline Operators – Close Protection OfficersTeam Leaders
Work Location: Afganistan, Iraq – Worldwide
Date Posted: Sunday, June 06, 2010
Responsibilities
Frontline Operators protect individuals, groups & physical assets from risk of violence or any situation which could be harmful.
Specific Responsibilities:
• Take responsibility for leading security teams
• Protecting clients from threats
• Checking out premises before clients arrive
• Planning and research to identify and prevent potential threat or disruption
• Keeping constantly alert to react to threatening situations
• Accompanying clients on business and social visits
• Driving clients to and from venues
Requirements
Recruitment Policy – OG Operators: From the 1st January 2010 Olive Group updated its recruitment criteria to be met by all frontline operators.
Publications: Contracting In Conflicts–The Path To Reform, By John Nagl And Richard Fontaine
Now this is a better product and I can tell they actually listened to their contributors. So bravo to CNAS for putting together a great report. If you look at the cast of contributors, you will also see that they took advice from guys like Doug Brooks, David Isenberg and a whole bunch of private military companies and military professionals. For the record, I was not a direct contributor, but I know some of the ideas of FJ made it out there in one way or another.
For one, they actually brought in Article 1, Section 8 of the US Constitution as a counter to Max Weber’s definition of the state. (the Second Amendment could also be looked at as a counter as well) I was beside myself when I read this in their ‘inherently governmental’ section, and I had to read it a couple of times to make sure they actually went there. They did and bravo to them for having the courage to challenge this sacred cow of thought.
This kind of sets the pace for the entire publication, because CNAS and all of it’s contributors were actually making the argument for the use of contractors in war time. It is an acknowledgement of that ‘elephant in the room’ called contractors, and it is an excellent first step towards combining private industry and government for the good of the nation and the wars it fights. To me, it has always been about unity of effort and command, and ensure private industry only helps government, not hurt it. If we can figure out how to achieve that unity of effort and command, I think the next step is what will really be radical.
I have argued on this blog that today’s war planners, leaders and strategists should make an effort to at least acknowledge that elephant in the room called contractors or private industry. We are getting there and I am enthused about the process. But to me, the next level of discourse about private industry is how do you turn that animal into a war elephant?
To me, it is not enough to just acknowledge our existence and say ‘oh well, private industry is that big dumb animal that we all have to get used to’. That is like using a pistol to hammer nails. I would make the argument that instead, private industry should be looked at from a strategic point of view and the question should be asked is ‘how do we use private industry to help win our wars and maintain a position of strength in the world today’? That is the next level of discourse about this subject, and that is the kind of thinking that could possibly lead to victory in our current wars. I say this, because there is a tremendous effort taking place to actually figure out how to regulate and utilize private industry during times of war, and this paper and current legislative action is proof of that process. So once we figure out how to shoot the pistol, as opposed to using it to hammer nails, we can then start discussing how to use that pistol in warfare.
Now on to the paper. Below I have listed some of the issues that popped up as I was reading it. Just little things that came to mind, that could help refine the product. Ideas are cheap, and I throw them around freely here. I have also listed some interesting portions of the paper to give the reader a taste. Be sure to check out all of the contributors, to include Allison Stanger (she provided the forward). Enjoy and let me know what you think.-Matt
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Contracting In Conflicts: The Path To Reform
By John Nagl and Richard Fontaine
06/07/2010
CNAS
In both Iraq and Afghanistan today there are more private contractors than U.S. troops on the ground. This exploding reliance on contractors costs U.S. taxpayers tens of billions of dollars and has grown with inadequate government oversight. This report – authored by Richard Fontaine and John Nagl – details the urgent need for comprehensive reform. The United States must embark on a path of ambitious reform that will require: new laws and regulations; an expansion of the government’s contracting workforce; a coordination mechanism within the executive branch; greater scrutiny, more transparency and clearer standards for private contractors; a strategic view of the roles contractors play in American operations; and a change in culture within the government.
Download the paper here.
Link to website here.