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Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law [MPEPIL]

Private Military Companies

Chia Lehnardt

Content type:
Encyclopedia entries
Product:
Max Planck Encyclopedias of International Law [MPIL]

Module:
Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law [MPEPIL]
Article last updated:
May 2011

From: Oxford Public International Law (http://opil.ouplaw.com). (c) Oxford University Press, 2023. All Rights Reserved.date: 22 January 2025

Subject(s):
Individual criminal responsibility — Geneva Conventions 1949 — Armed conflict — Responsibility of states — Responsibility of international organizations — Ultra Vires conduct — Armed forces — Military assistance

Published under the auspices of the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law under the direction of Professor Anne Peters (2021–) and Professor Rüdiger Wolfrum (2004–2020). 

1 The term ‘private military companies’ is commonly used to denote companies offering a wide array of military services traditionally associated with the armed forces of a State in an armed conflict or a post-conflict setting outside their home State. These functions include maintenance of weapon systems, collection of intelligence both on the strategic and tactical level, training and advising of armed and security forces, interrogation of individuals, and activities including the potentially lethal use of force: staffing of checkpoints, protection of personnel...
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