Security Staff “walk off the job” in Iraq over a pay dispute

January 8, 2016 | OVERSEAS INTEL, The Danger Zone

Security staff charged with protecting New Zealand's ambassador to Iraq are said to have walked off the job after a pay dispute and claims cost-cutting has put private military contractors doing the work at higher risk.

The private security staff are paid by the Australian Government to protect Australia's embassy, which is shared with New Zealand and base to ambassador James Munro. The Australian reported this week that up to 40 protection specialists of the 67 who had guarded the embassy were to be flown out of Iraq as a result of the dispute.

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It came as the company hired to provide security began a new contract at a substantially lower rate than it had previously received for the same task. Unity Resources Group will be paid $51 million to provide protection for the embassy for the next five years after picking up $101 million for the work for the four previous years.

A Herald source familiar with private military contracting work in Iraq said URG staff in Afghanistan had their pay cut a few months ago from US$600 a day to US$340 a day ($876 to $496) and the same was believed to be happening in Iraq.

"If the New Zealand Government is using the Australian embassy they will be paying a portion of security staff," he said. He said companies involved in the provision of private security staff had recently faced tough questions about how much the Western client countries were being charged. Someone paid US$600-a-day could expect to be charged back to the client at US$1600-a-day.

The loss of the experienced staff had raised concerns over the quality of those being brought in as replacements, he said.

The Weekend Australian reported two senior URG staff had told Australia's ambassador Charles Langman the company wasn't meeting the terms of the new contract.

The URG staff warned the company was unable to meet the requirement of filling three teams of 10 security specialists. A Weekend Australian source said the teams were at half strength.

New recruits were being flown in to meet the shortfall, but had apparently yet to be security cleared for the role. It raised questions as to whether they would be allowed weapons before the security clearance had been completed, and had prompted concern among existing staff over their competence.

Green Party MP Dave Clendon said New Zealand's presence was important as Iraq's future would be built on strong diplomacy not military action. He said it was concerning there were questions over the protection for the ambassador and safety of the mission.

"Our Government should seek assurances that all is well."

A spokeswoman for Duty Minister Chris Finlayson confirmed security for New Zealand's embassy was provided by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

"We have full confidence that DFAT has put in place the necessary security arrangements to safeguard the embassy."

She said the Government had been "kept updated on the rollover of the Australian Embassy's security contract" and was confident it would not change security for Mr Munro, the only staff member at the embassy.

Mr Munro, a former military officer with diplomatic experience in the Middle East, was appointed ambassador to Iraq in mid-2015.

Although Unity Resources Groups prefers hiring former Australian military personnel, it has targeted New Zealanders with experience in the armed forces.

Sources say, Iraqi Dinar contractors brought back with them during LOGCAP III & IV is pretty much worthless

January 6, 2016 | Justice Abroad

Despite reports of the economy in Iraq rebounded after years of conflict the Iraqi dinar contractors brought back with them brought back with them during LOGCAP III & IV is pretty much worthless. According to some sources the Dinar has no chance of significant appreciation. The main reason is because of the political uncertainty — who would invest in the currency of a government that is still fighting a significant insurgency and might not be around the next year, any year? Second, and much more importantly, there are so many Dinars floating around that even if Iraq discovered the world’s largest gold mine tomorrow, the value of the Dinar would not significantly appreciate.

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Government rejects bill to introduce private military contractors in Russia

January 2, 2016 | OVERSEAS INTEL

The Russian cabinet has rejected a bill regulating the work of private military companies because of legal weaknesses and security fears, Izvestia reports, citing the author of the document.

The main sponsor of the bill, MP Gennady Nosovko of the center-left party Fair Russia was disappointed at its rejection. However, he has promised to rework the draft and submit it again in November. He added that he did not agree with many of the government’s conclusions regarding their review of his bill, but refused to go into detail.

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He mentioned that if the reworked piece of legislation was rejected again, he would bypass the government and send it directly to the State Duma before the end of 2015.

“Russia needs private military companies that would protect its interests in the Arctic and in the Middle East,” he told reporters.

He also mentioned that the use of private military companies would increase competitiveness, while also providing jobs for military and law enforcement veterans.

Nosovko agreed that strong government control was essential for private military contractors to function successfully. However, he noted that the government had not decided which agency or ministry would be responsible for keeping them in check, if the bill was signed into law.

Izvestia quoted an unnamed source in one of Russia’s “power agencies” who said the government had rejected the bill because a section concerning state regulation lacked detail.

“The main question is which organization, the Defense Ministry or the Federal Security Service of the Interior Ministry, would control tens thousands of “Rambos” to make sure that they would not turn their arms against the state itself,” the source said.

The newspaper added that according to its information, the Defense Ministry and the Federal Security Service strongly opposed the very idea of private military companies in Russia because such organizations could potentially become free of state control and could even be used against the government. However, both the Defense Ministry and the FSB have declined to comment officially on the issue.

This is not the first time that lawmakers have tried to pass legislation, which would see the introduction of military contractors in Russia.

In July, two lawmakers from the parliamentary majority caucus United Russia said they had prepared a bill that would grant private military companies broad rights, but also give control over them to the Defense Ministry, which would use them as an immediate response to various threats.

While Russia does not have private military companies, private security firms are abundant. This includes independent contractors and security branches of major corporations. According to the Interior Ministry’s statistics, there are currently over 60,000 such companies in the country with about 700,000 employees.

Those favoring the introduction of private military contractors in Russia say that if the legislation is eventually passed, it could create over 500,000 jobs.

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