Center for Security Studies

Untitled Document

Grant GAČR

The staff members of the Center for Security Studies under the leadership of Dr. Oldřich Bureš are participating in the research grant P408/11/0395 awarded by the Czech Science Agency Privatization of Security: Role of Private Sector Actors in Countering Contemporary Security Threats.

In the 2011-2015 period, the research project will analyze the phenomenon of security privatization. In addition to examining the less researched aspects of the use of private military and security companies, the proposed project will investigate other areas, where private security actors have become increasingly visible and active, including the global efforts to fight terrorist financing, critical infrastructure protection, cybersecurity etc. The project will also explore the dark side of security privatization, including the involvement of various private producers, intermediaries, and transportation companies in the illicit trade of small arms, diamonds, and other natural resources, as well as allegations of human rights and other international law violations by various private security actors. A related important goal is to analyze the legal, economic, and political pros and cons of possible regulation frameworks for activities of private security actors. Finally, at the theoretical level, it is increasingly clear that states are no longer the only security providers both internally and externally.

Publications from this grant are available at our webpage - clik here.

Tentative project timetable and areas of research

Year one: Private sector actors and contemporary conflicts

Private sector actors in the contemporary security environment
Private military and/or security companies and war-making
Comparative analysis of the extent of military outsourcing and strategies of security privatization of key states
Private military and/or security companies and peace-keeping/-building/-reconstructing
Private sector security actors and contemporary law of war
Private military and/or security companies and NGOs’ security provision

Year two: Private sector actors in the fight against terrorism

Private banks and financial institutions and freezing of terrorist assets
Targeted sanctions implementation by private sector actors – airlines and travel bans, private universities and study bans etc.
Private military and/or security companies and intelligence gathering, interrogation
Black operations – use of private actors for secret operations
Private security actors – victims, drivers and/or winners of contemporary conflicts?

Year three: Private sector actors and the protection of critical infrastructures

Private security companies and air-, sea- and other ports security provision
Security versus justice implications of the use of private security actors
Private security companies and travel documents security, esp. biometric data
Private military and/or security companies and the fight against piracy – maritime security
Private security actors and cybersecurity
Which military functions are economically transferable on private sector actors and what are the limits of such outsourcing?

Year four: Private sector actors and other contemporary security threats/risks/issues

Private sector and small arms proliferation – role of private producers, intermediaries and suppliers, and transportation companies
Private sector and global health care issues – e.g. swine flue pandemia as a private sector bluff to make more money?
Private sector actor and energy security - pipelines construction, protection, security of drilling sites etc.
Role of private “security think-tanks” and their impacts on security policies formulation by public sector officials
Private military and/or security companies and prisons administration

Year five: Practical, political, and theoretical implications of security privatization

Regulation/monitoring of private security actors – options, dilemmas, levels (international, state, or sub-state?)
Private/public sector relations in the area of security, including corruption issues
Private military and/or security companies and national armed forces – competition or symbiosis?
Impact on International Relations and International Security theories – Is the state still the key (security) actor in the contemporary international political system?
Up-dating research results from years 1-4.

Note: The aforementioned project schedule is tentative, some topics may require more time-consuming analyses than others. New areas and/or issued linked to security privatization may also appear, so schedule adjustments may be necessary in any given year.