Tree-huggers and baby-killers: The relationship between NGOs and PMSCs and its impact on coordinating actors in complex operations

摘要

Private military and security companies' (PMSCs) relationship with state actors has received significant scholarly attention; their interaction with other private actors such as humanitarian non-governmental organisations (NGOs) has remained largely neglected. This article looks at the evolving relationship between NGOs and PMSCs in three parts. First, it assesses the current state of NGO-PMSC interaction. Two aspects stand out: contracting and conflict. By drawing on existing research on different forms of inter-cultural cooperation such as military-military and humanitarian-military cooperation, the second part of the article will show that conflict between PMSCs and NGOs can inter alia arise from their differing backgrounds, mandates, approaches to security, and short- and long-term goals. By looking at both differences and similarities between the two actors, the third part of the article will sketch out possible pathways for the future.