Topic: 2024-Private Military Contractors
Country: Iran
Delegate Name: Meira Gable
As the world moves into the middle of the 21st century, warfare has continued to evolve and add increased complications to the actions of the international community. In particular, the rise of government funded private companies to carry out military and political objectives has made it difficult to enforce international humanitarian and human rights law on these organizations. Not only is it difficult to prove the accountability of the nations involved, but it is often tricky to discern these involvements in the first place. In recent years, Private Military Contractors (PMCs) have been deemed responsible for civilian deaths in Iraq and numerous other crimes that have gone largely unprosecuted. As the proliferation of these private companies continues, the international community must be ready to address human rights violations, increase national sovereignty and stability, and most importantly successfully hold culpable nations responsible for their involvement.
In many instances of private military involvement, Western nations have been especially involved in increasing foreign influence over areas like the Middle East. There is no doubt that the use of companies like Blackwater USA have caused harmful attacks in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other locations, further perpetrating the violence and war occurring in these areas. Historically, events like the Nisour Square massacre have not only detrimentally impacted the livelihood of civilians but have also decreased the overall stability of the country, in Iraq’s case being in some part responsible for ISIS’s rise later on in the 21st century due to increased anti-American sentiment.
The nation of Iran firmly believes that military decisions belong only in the hands of the state itself. The continued use of PMCs cannot stay in its current unregulated state. However, many proposed agreements and documents, such as the International Code of Conduct for Private Security Service Providers and the Montreux Document, have simply not addressed the important aspects of this issue. In regards to the former, the Code is nearly impossible to enforce legally and based on an opt-in system, making it virtually ineffective. With respect to the Montreux Document, while Iran strongly agrees that the human rights violations committed by PMCs must be combatted, the Montreux Document entirely neglects PMC activities in non-conflict zones, remedies for the victims of these activities, and a still unresolved legal status for PMC personnel in conflict zones. While Iran has yet to support these documents, that is not to say the nation will not in the future, as of now they simply don’t address the problems associated with PMCs.
With all this being said, there are some clear paths forward that Iran would support. The problems associated with PMCs largely arise out of the lack of legislation to hold them accountable. Iran firmly believes that military decisions should be made by the state, and should not be outsourced to private companies. However, many PMCs still remain, and must be dealt with accordingly. Iran would like to see clearer definitions of civilians and combatants, as well as more aid to the victims of PMCs’ actions. Finally, when DISEC is addressing this topic, it is important to distinguish between the company and any state actors. There are already numerous regulations in place over UN member states in order to ensure compliance with international law. PMCs are separate bodies that require separate regulations, and should be treated as such for the purposes of this committee.
The Islamic Republic of Iran is looking forward to collaborating on this issue, and developing a more robust regulatory scheme for Private Military Contractors.
