Here’s Why The Privatization Of War Must Stop NOW

By Sophie McAdam

We recently published a video in which Russia’s Vladimir Putin claimed the USA directly funded and armed mercenaries (hired killers) to fight against President Assad in Syria. He made the alarming accusation that many of these soldiers, who are loyal to nobody and motivated only by money, are defecting to the Islamic State in huge numbers – along with all the weapons given to them by the Pentagon.

While many readers found this entirely plausible given all the aggressive U.S-led invasions of oil-rich countries that we’ve seen in the past 14 years, we did receive one email from a patriotic American who was angry that True Activist would give Putin’s claims any attention at all. This short campaign video from War on Want might clear up any confusion as to why we believe the Russian President’s accusations deserve to be publicized. After all, sparking debate is more important than blind nationalism, which seems to be a contributing factor to the global mess we now find ourselves in.

Even the mainstream media has openly reported on the USA’s training of ‘rebels’ in Jordan, as well as detailing how the Pentagon ‘lost’ weapons they sent to militants in Yemen. All of this is common knowledge, which is why Putin’s claims are not at all far-fetched. Whether we like it or not, the assertion that modern warfare has become a corporate profiteering business is by no means a conspiracy, it’s a fact. The USA’s self-styled role as the world’s bad cop (not to mention the States being the seat of global corporatocracy) means that the privatization of war has become a natural next step for the White House (and of course its allies; Britain is another known culprit).

Private Military and Security Companies (known as PMSCs) are contracted by corrupt leaders and they are making big bucks by profiting from war and insecurity around the world. These companies are complicit in human rights abuses, putting profit before people and fanning the flames of war. Who is fighting who is largely irrelevant; all that matters is that arms are being sold and money is being made.

It’s quite possible that even if the USA and Britain didn’t intend to help the growth of the Islamic State, the private companies who do their dirty work in the Middle East may have a hell of a lot to answer for with regard to hiring mercenaries. The problem is, we’ll never know for certain because these corporations are unaccountable, unregulated, and very secretive. Unlike Governments, who are ultimately responsible for the atrocities and war crimes they commit, private companies cannot be legally tried for their actions. Watch the video to find out more about this huge miscarriage of justice, or visit the War On Want site here.

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