Executive Outcomes: Against all Odds

Executive Outcomes was already well known to several governments and private corporations before it exploded into controversy in 1993 after entering into a contract with Angola’s FAA to train a brigade-level force to decisively end their decades-old conflict with UNITA. It was also well known to those involved in fermenting conflicts in order to topple African governments with a view to controlling resources for personal gain. The role Executive Outcomes played in bringing an end to the conflicts in Angola and Sierra Leone threatened numerous duplicitous foreign entities. To protect their economic and other interests, a media frenzy was generated to discredit the company, and false media and intelligence reporting became the norm upon which Executive Outcomes was judged. Despite attempts to bribe the company’s founder and massive pressure from several international governments—including the South African government—Executive Outcomes continued to provide assistance and support to African and other governments under siege. In honoring its contracts, several of its employees made the ultimate sacrifice. Executive Outcomes is still regarded as the gold standard by which similar companies are judged, and it is the only private military company that never failed in a contract or abandoned a client government. During the years that it was active, the men of Executive Outcomes saved many thousands of lives. In this revised edition, the author presents a no-holds-barred account of the company’s activities and the numerous threats it had to deal with, including attempts to assassinate its founder and chairman. Read more