ABSTRACT
Over the past thirty years the emergence of private military and security companies (PMSCs) reveals significant global changes in security, politics, and economics. While some brand armed contractors as mercenaries and seek to ban their use, PMSCs are nonetheless commonplace with states, and intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations becoming clients, and increasingly the focus of policy debates over PMSCs has shifted towards regulation. This chapter unpacks the PMSC phenomenon. First, it parses the development of PMSCs as an armed non-state actor with a corporate identity. Second, the chapter outlines the contemporary contours and configurations of the sector. Third, it examines key normative and legal frameworks. Lastly, the chapter analyzes the impact of PMSCs on international organization and global governance in terms of roles, rules, markets, knowledge production, and justice in the formulation of security.
