Outsourced Empire
How Militias, Mercenaries, and Contractors Support US Statecraft
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Pluto Press
Published:20th Jun '18
Should be back in stock very soon
This hardback is available in another edition too:
- Paperback£24.99(9780745337036)
There has been a shift in the way that we understand the forces behind imperialism. In this book, Andrew Thomson re-evaluates the history of US imperialism, from the Cold War to today, by looking at the influence of paramilitary actors.
Thomson reveals how these agents are central to US imperialism - from the Guatemalan coup to the Bay of Pigs, from Syrian rebel factions to the Soviet-Afghan War, bringing these narratives together to reveal the evolution of paramilitary insurgencies across the globe. Militias, mercenaries, and private companies (PMCs) have formed a central part of the strategies designed to influence political and economic conditions abroad, oriented towards the US’s Empire.
Drawing on declassified documents including US training manuals, CIA communiqués and the National Security Archive, Outsourced Empire reveals new evidence that helps us understand these institutions and their collective role in maintaining global order.
'A timely and critical look at the evolution, formation, and role of US propelled paramilitarism ... a vital study' -- Jeb Sprague, University of California, Santa Barbara, author of Paramilitarism and the Assault on Democracy in Haiti (Monthly Review Press, 2012)
'Existing works which seek to explain US foreign policy in imperial terms do not pay sufficient attention to the consistent use of para-state networks. Thomson corrects this lacuna, through detailed empirical analyses ... an original and distinctive book' -- Sam Raphael, Department of Politics and IR, University of Westminster
'A very important and timely contribution' -- Jasmin Hristov, University of British Colombia, author of Paramilitarism and Neoliberalism (Pluto, 2016)
ISBN: 9780745337050
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: 478g
256 pages