Contract comes despite Sec. Clinton's pledge to ban 'private mercenary firms'
The State Department has awarded part of a $10-billion embassy protection contract to the company formerly known as Blackwater, but you wouldn't know it by looking at government documents.
On Thursday, the State Department announced the winners of a tender to protect security services to diplomatic missions around the world, including the US's massive embassy in Iraq. The name Xe Services -- Blackwater's current name -- doesn't appear in the contract, but the name International Development Solutions does.
Spencer Ackerman reports at Wired.com that International Development Solutions is a shell company set up by Blackwater in partnership with engineering firm Kaseman to run US Training Center, a Blackwater subsidiary.
"No one who looks at the official announcement of the contract award would have any idea that firm is connected to Blackwater," Ackerman writes.
Fresh food that lasts from eFoods Direct (Ad)
Live Superfoods
Print this page
