The Rise of the Private Military and Security Industry
... incorporated into any military chain of command. Due to these characteristics, PMSC personnel have often been described as mere mercenaries, an accusation that the companies themselves vehemently deny; understandably so, since mercenarism is illegal under existing international law. Some observers have supported the view that PMSCs and their personnel should not be classified as mercenaries ... ... attracted by the activities of companies like Executive Outcomes in the Angolan civil war during the early 1990’s and Blackwater in Iraq, the term “security company” became dominant among PMSCs, in an effort to stress the allegedly ...