Individual DOD contractors fulfill a wide variety of organizational roles and functions from logistics and transportation to intelligence analysis and private security [top 10 defense contractors of the world].
Following the conclusion of the Cold War, the U.S. military—in line with a government-wide trend—embraced outsourcing, increasing reliance on contractors instead of using military servicemembers or government civilians to perform certain tasks. Some analysts have highlighted numerous benefits of using contractors. These benefits include freeing up uniformed personnel
to focus on military-specific activities; providing supplemental expertise in specialized fields, such as linguistics or weapon systems maintenance; and providing a surge capability to quickly deliver critical support functions tailored to specific military needs. Some have accordingly argued that meeting immediate personnel needs through surges in contractors used by the federal government is more cost-effective on a long-term basis and just as the effective use of contractors can augment military capabilities.
(POC) - AECOM will provide program management advisory and technical advisory support to help Ukraine rebuild its infrastructure, the company announced last month. The Dallas-based firm signed a memorandum of understanding with Ukraine’s Ministry for Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development to serve as its reconstruction delivery partner.
A Kyiv School of Economics report released in March said the damage Russia has caused to Ukraine’s infrastructure after a year of war has reached $36.2 billion in replacement costs. That number rises to $143.8 billion when including housing, healthcare, energy and other types of facilities.
“The reconstruction of Ukraine is one of the world’s greatest humanitarian and infrastructure priorities, and we are honored to partner with Deputy Prime Minister Kubrakov and the Ukrainian government to help position this effort to successfully deliver on their long-term recovery ambitions,” AECOM CEO Troy Rudd said in the release.
In the role, AECOM will help design and establish an overall program management approach to aid in the efficient delivery of a range of reconstruction projects. Additionally, the firm announced it will work with Ukraine’s State Agency for Restoration and Development of Infrastructure to advance cost estimating and engineering support for complex and critical infrastructure projects.
The company did not disclose the value of the contracts.
AECOM has delivered major reconstruction work around the world in Iraq, Afghanistan and Bosnia, according to the release, as well as post-natural disaster reconstruction in Nepal, Haiti, Japan, Indonesia and the Caribbean.
According to sources an U.S. contractor was killed and five service members and one other contractor injured by a drone strike on a coalition base in northeast Syria, reported by the Department of Defense.
The U.S. retaliated with airstrikes on Iranian-linked targets in Syria, which hit buildings that housed drone/aviation assets and vehicles used by groups affiliated with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). One activist group said the U.S. strikes killed fighters on the ground.
“The airstrikes were conducted in response to today’s attack as well as a series of recent attacks against coalition forces in Syria by groups affiliated with the I.R.G.C.,” Mr. Austin said in a statement
“These precision strikes are intended to protect and defend U.S. personnel,” the statement said. “The United States took proportionate and deliberate action intended to limit the risk of escalation and minimize casualties.”
