The article examines aspects of privatisation in the process of defence production and supply from an economic point of view. It argues that the scope and rationale for the privatisation of military output has expanded with the changes in the mode and style of warfare and the decline of defence budgets evidenced in the post‐Cold War era. The article proposes that limited private production can be both cost‐effective and efficacious, provided that the contracts for that service, and the duties described therein, are sufficiently specific. Privatisation is not, however, a panacea for resource misallocation and not necessarily an organisational structure that provides appropriate incentives to firms, consumers and the state. Viewed from the perspective of economic theory, the article concludes, privatisation of military outputs seems to have some, but quite limited, viability.
The privatisation of military force: Economic virtues, vices and government responsibility
Reprints and Corporate Permissions
Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?
To request a reprint or corporate permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below:
Academic Permissions
Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?
Obtain permissions instantly via Rightslink by clicking on the button below:
If you are unable to obtain permissions via Rightslink, please complete and submit this Permissions form. For more information, please visit our Permissions help page.
Related research
People also read lists articles that other readers of this article have read.
Recommended articles lists articles that we recommend and is powered by our AI driven recommendation engine.
Cited by lists all citing articles based on Crossref citations.
Articles with the Crossref icon will open in a new tab.