Text Multiple Choice: Based on the information in your lessons and in the following excerpt, what is the main concern surrounding Private Military Companies (PMC)? Throughout both the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the US Department of Defense contracted with private military companies (PMCs) to provide services formerly the responsibility of uniformed troops. The government regards the employees of these PMCs as “civilian contractors” although to most Iraqis and Afghanis, as well as a significant number of Americans, PMC employees look and act like soldiers. It has become increasingly common for governments, including the United States, to privatize certain routine services such as contracting with for-profit companies to provide security at federal buildings, operate prisons and manage offenders, and even some shipping services once reserved to the US Postal Service. Extending this concept to include operations and missions formerly reserved for uniformed military troops, however, has raised significant legal and ethical questions. Are employees of PMCs subject to the same battlefield limitations and responsibilities defined by the Geneva Convention and other treaties? Are employees of PMCs actually mercenaries, the relatively derogatory term applied to paid soldiers? Who is responsible for regulating the actions of PMC employees when they are deployed to foreign battlefields; is it their civilian employer or the commanding officers of the military? These and other questions must be answered and strict regulations that define the authority of PMCs and their employees set into place.