The Vultures are Gathering - Mercenary Corporations look to AFRICOM for new Contracts

In October the International Peace Operations Association, IPOA, the trade association that lobbies for mercenaries, will meet in Washington DC for their 2008 Annual Convention. The theme of their annual conference is: Engaging AFRICOM

In Dogs of War: Back to Africa, David Isenberg asks:

Where does the future lie for the private military industry? (When) Iraq, the mother of all private military contracting opportunities … draw(s) to a close
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Most likely they will return to their point of origin, Africa. In fact, some are already there.

The IPOA says their business is “peace and stability operations”, but private militaries are uniquely unqualified to bring peace and stability anywhere. In order to have peace and stability it is necessary to have accountability and the rule of law. Modern PMCs operate outside any law and any accountability. They try to represent themselves as guarders and trainers. But the training they provide should be viewed with skepticism, as with the videos that recently emerged of an American PMC training Mexican police in torture techniques.

Some say the next oil wars will be fought in Africa. This is what the IPOA is looking at. For a picture of this, click on the link below. In a frame on the left you will be able to scroll down a list of Major Oil Corporation and U.S. Military Activities in Africa. More