ABSTRACT
The widespread reliance on private military and security companies (PMSCs) as providers of vessel protection stands in glaring contrast with states’ commitment to uphold a monopoly of violence and stigmatise the presence of armed non-state actors at sea as an aberration. Why have countries worldwide departed from such norms and turned to PMSCs to protect ships from pirates operating in the Western Indian Ocean? This chapter examines the maritime private security policies of the states hosting the three largest shipping registries worldwide: Panama, Liberia and the Marshall Islands. As they currently account for 40% of worldwide tonnage, these countries shape the most widely applied policies in the shipping sector. The fact that Panama, Liberia and the Marshall Islands’ alike all rapidly authorised the use of PMSCs as providers of vessel protection marked a turning point in the privatisation of maritime security worldwide, urging most states to allow for the presence of armed guards aboard ships.
