Mercenary and temperament

A few days ago, the Wagner Group, a group of mercenaries hired from Russia, rebelled. Groups that go to war because they like war are always dangerous inside. While the Wagner Group has a better record than Russia's regular army, it seems to have been a problem that the Wagner Group did not receive proper treatment. In addition, it is an incident that showed the weakness of President Putin's centralization. Originally, the war that hired mercenaries became immersed in another chaotic war that escaped the war between countries. War employing mercenaries is inconvenient for both the enemy and the allies.

 

As states retreat, the vacuum of authority has bred endless war and suffering, harkening a return to the Middle Ages in some part pf the world. These wars are not fought conventionally. Terrorism, ethnic cleansing, and other forms of violence by nonstate actors have eclipsed conventional interstate wars.

 

The ability of the United Nations or the West to police the situation fades each year, while nonstate actor grow more powerful. International realtions are returning to the chaos of pre-Westphalian days.

 

- [ The new rules pf war ] by SEAN McFATE -

 

In the first half of the book, the author says that it is much more economical and reasonable to train special forces than to invest in strategic weapons such as stealth fighter jets and aircraft carriers, as the aspect of war gradually flows into non-regular warfare such as ethnic cleansing and terrorism. However, strategic weapons are aimed at preventing major wars, and irregular warfare should not be encouraged. War should not be used as a means of making money or as a venue for philosophical experiences, and mercenaries are not subject to the Geneva Agreement, so there is a possibility of a mutual barbaric end.

 

The United States also has mercenaries in the form of corporate corporations, France operates regularized mercenaries called foreign troops, and Britain operates regularized mercenaries called Gurkha mercenaries. But the hiring of mercenaries needs to be prudent. As seen in the Wagner Group case, mercenaries can become predators that have escaped from the beast cage.

 

When North Korean President Kim Jong-un came to power, I was worried that North Korean military generals would seize power. Because military generals are temperamentally close to war. Russians who spent their youth in the Soviet military government, Chinese who miss Mao's socialist revolution, Western citizens who confronted the communist camp during the Cold War, and the world's elders and leaders who embodied the belligerence of war may have a temperamentally dream of war. Especially for combatants employed as mercenaries.

 

The problem is that the world is wandering in the horrors and affection of war. But historically, war has never benefited from it. This is especially true in modern times when weapons and technology are developed. Even if it is somewhat unstylish, it is much more beneficial to come up with pragmatic compromises and negotiations than to hire mercenaries.