From Mercenaries to Market: The Rise and Regulation of Private Military Companies [Hardcover]

Simon Chesterman (Editor), Chia Lehnardt (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0199228485 | ISBN-13: 978-0199228485 | Publication Date: August 23, 2007

Frequently characterized as either mercenaries in modern guise or the market's response to a security vacuum, private military companies are commercial firms offering military services ranging from combat and military training and advice to logistical support, and play an increasingly important role in armed conflicts, UN peace operations, and providing security in unstable states.

As private military companies assume more responsibilities in conflict and post-conflict settings, their growing significance raises fundamental questions about their nature, their role in different regions and contexts, and their regulation. This volume examines the interaction between regulation and market forces and analyzes the current legal framework and the needs and possibilities for regulation in the years ahead.

Editorial Reviews

Review

As a resource, From Mercenaries to Market serves only as a starting point, but a very good one. At only 256 pages, and covering many different topics relating to PMCs, it is impressive that the contributors provide so much useful analysis and information. Every contribution is well cited, and chapters are complimented by a select bibliography that makes taking the next step easy for inquisitive readers Alex M. Feldman, Journal of International Law and Politics Despite some critical remarks, both books offer interesting and serious scholarship about a very difficult and controversial topic. In addition, both books offer some fresh angles and even new topics that are not usually examined in the PMC discourse Erkki Holmila, Finnish Yearbook of International Law

About the Author

Simon Chesterman is Global Professor and Director of the New York University School of Law Singapore Programme, and Vice Dean and Professor of Law at the National University of Singapore. His books include You, The People: The United Nations, Transitional Administration, and State-Building (Oxford University Press, 2004) and Just War or Just Peace? Humanitarian Intervention and International Law (Oxford University Press, 2001).

Chia Lehnardt is a doctoral student in Berlin. From 2005-2006 she was responsible for the research project on private military companies at the Institute for International Law and Justice (IILJ), New York University School of Law. Educated in Berlin, Oxford, Florence, and New York, she has previously worked as a consultant to the IILJ, at the German Federal Parliament, and with a law firm specializing in public law.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 275 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (August 23, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0199228485
• ISBN-13: 978-0199228485
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,871,382 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Simon Chesterman is Global Professor and Director of the New York University School of Law Singapore Programme, and Vice Dean and Professor at the National University of Singapore Faculty of Law. From 2004 to 2006 he was Executive Director of NYU's Institute for International Law and Justice.

Educated in Melbourne, Beijing, Amsterdam, and Oxford, Chesterman's teaching experience includes periods at the Universities of Melbourne, Oxford, Southampton, Columbia, and Sciences Po, as well as NYU.

Prior to joining NYU, he was a Senior Associate at the International Peace Academy and Director of UN Relations at the International Crisis Group in New York. He has previously worked for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Yugoslavia and interned at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.