|
The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
Kidnappings, Torture and Big Money |
|
July 22nd,
2008 - Blackwater Brand Shift: Security to Take Back Seat |
|
Blackwater Brand
Shift: Security to Take Back Seat By Matt Apuzzo & Mike Baker Associated Press July 22nd, 2008 Moyock, N.C. - Blackwater
Worldwide, the company that unwittingly became a catchall brand name for
security contractors in Iraq, wants to shift its business away from the
sector that earned it hundreds of millions of dollars. Blackwater executives said
Monday that they never intended security to become such a large part of their
business. They said the intense and often negative media attention, coupled
with multiple government investigations following a deadly shooting last year
in Baghdad, simply make the cost of doing business too high. "The experience we've
had would certainly be a disincentive to any other companies that want to
step in and put their entire business at risk," company founder and CEO
Erik Prince told The Associated Press during a daylong visit to the company's
North Carolina compound. Blackwater will continue guarding
U.S. officials in Iraq - under a contract worth hundreds of millions of
dollars - but its future will be focused on training, aviation and logistics,
the company said. "Security was not part
of the master plan, ever," company president Gary Jackson said. Nevertheless, the company
became synonymous with the image of private security guards in Iraq. "It's been like
Coca-Cola," Jackson said. "Blackwater: Security contractors." Blackwater attracted
worldwide attention last September when its security contractors opened fire
in a crowded Baghdad intersection while responding to a car bombing. Seventeen Iraqis were
killed, making Blackwater a flash point in the debate over the use of
contractors in war zones. Iraqi officials originally wanted the company
expelled from the country, straining relations between Baghdad and
Washington. Since then, company
executives say they've been investigated or audited by a litany of government
agencies, from the FBI to Homeland Security to even the Agriculture
Department. In 2005 and 2006, security
jobs represented more than 50 percent of the company's business. The security
business is down to about 30 percent of Blackwater revenue now and Jackson
said it will go much lower. "If I could get it down
to 2 percent or 1 percent, I would go there," he said, adding that the
media have falsely portrayed much about that aspect of the company. "If
you could get it right, we might stay in the business." The Justice Department is
expected to decide soon whether to bring charges against a handful of
contractors involved in the shooting in Baghdad's Nosier Square. The company
itself is not a target of the investigation and has pledged its cooperation
with the probe. Company executives would not
say whether they expect their contractors to face charges but said an
indictment likely wouldn't affect the core business model. "Indictment of any of
the folks who were in Nosier Square wouldn't be grounds for disablement (from
government contracts)," Andrew Howell, the company's general counsel,
said. Blackwater's 7,000-acre
compound offers unparalleled training facilities that attract swarms of U.S.
military, federal law enforcement and local officials each year. The company also has
expanded its aviation division, which provides airplane and helicopter
maintenance and also drops supplies into hard-to-reach military bases. A
6,000-foot runway is under construction and a large map in the company's
hangar shows units based across the world, from Africa to the Middle East to
Australia. "Our focus is away from
security work. We're just not bidding on it," Jackson said. The State Department
extended Backwater's contract to provide embassy security this year.
Undersecretary of State Patrick Kennedy said Monday he has not been notified
by Blackwater that it intends to reduce or eliminate security work. "They have a contract
with us through the next nine or 10 months," Kennedy said. "They
have not indicated to us that they are attempting to get out of our current
contract." That decision to scale back
future security business reflects not only the difficult year Blackwater has
had but also the fact that there's probably not as much growth opportunity. The growth in Backwater's
aviation and international training sectors could also buffer the company
against other changes in military policy. Defense Secretary Robert Gates is
looking into the use of contractors for combat and security training. "Why have we come to
rely on private contractors to provide combat or combat-related security
training for our forces?" Gates wrote in a July 10 memo to the
Pentagon's top military officer, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Adm. Mike
Mullen. The memo was released Monday
to The Associated Press by the office of Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va. Webb raised
concerns about the role of private contractors and specifically Blackwater,
which opened a new counterterrorism training center in San Diego last month
over the opposition of city officials. Webb had been blocking
Senate consideration of four civilian Defense Department nominees while
waiting for answers. On Monday, Webb told Gates he was lifting his opposition
to the nominees. Copyright © 2008 The
Associated Press. External link: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5i1mAj-JcxOopICiL4Ikh7xUYsGtwD922P8MG0 |