View of The role of intelligence services in forming paramilitary formations

(1)

A new decade

for social changes

ISSN 2668-7798

Vol. 18, 2021

(2)

The role of intelligence services in forming paramilitary formations

Bakir Alispahić

Faculty of Criminalistics, Criminology and Security Studies, University of Sarajevo/Associate professor

[email protected]

Abstract. Intelligence services, as an important segment of national security, have an unconventional but very successful approach to modern way of acting in solving state problems.

As such, special and specialized services of intelligence agencies, using elements of violence in the form of violent groups and formations, influence interstate relations and positions of states and their governments on a hierarchical scale within the world - global order. Paramilitary formations, as an extended arm of the intelligence services, perform dirty and illegal jobs for the state and its elite, without the state fearing sanctions of international justice and retaliation. The role and influence of paramilitary formations on the creation of new borders, gaining resources and securing a political position, are irreplaceable in the modern age of global anarchy, when the state of antagonism among states is at its peak. Paramilitary formations, through their client of the intelligence service, directly serve the government that is waging the Special War as a means of reaching the desired - planned goal such as, for instance, resources, in an unjust and illegal way, at the cost of other people’s lives. By recognizing and documenting the activities of the Special War and the work of intelligence services, it is possible to create countermeasures (counter-intelligence protection) that would reduce the consequences, and the first step is to understand the relationship between intelligence and paramilitary formations that create crises using asymmetric and non-kinetic methods, locally as well as regionally and globally. Predefined paragraph styles

Keywords. paramilitary formations, intelligence services, security, special war, war

Introduction

Intelligence services, as specific and specialized offensive - defensive elements of the state, strive to ensure certain advantages of their own state over other states, whether at the regional or global level. In such a race in which there is no dichotomous division into just - unjust, or even moral - immoral, all means, methods and activities are allowed. Of course, this can be done due to the special circumstances that protect the state, which are the work of intelligence and security elements. One of such elements are paramilitary formations that have their applicability both in peace and in war. As an extended arm of the intelligence apparatus and the state, they serve to perform dirty work, dangerous tasks and as a scapegoat for planned, committed and prosecuted crimes. The paramilitary formations themselves deserve special attention in the modern, high - tech age. They appear as the anomaly and the unconventional aspect of the aggressive policy of the state that strive for natural resources, financial, human or some other.

Technium Social Sciences Journal Vol. 18, 508-517, April, 2021 ISSN: 2668-7798 www.techniumscience.com

(3)

In the modern age, paramilitary formations are replacing the role of conventional forces such as the regular and official army, police and other elements of state security. Conventional forces, as an offensive and defensive element of the state, are losing more and more importance at the expense of paramilitary forces. The reason for this is the ‘destructive’ power possessed by a large number of states expressed in the possession of nuclear warheads, ballistic missiles of great destructive power, equivalence of forces, either infantry, mechanized and motorized brigades, aviation or navy, as well as countermeasures that exist for the listed offensive elements. In the case of a possible war between superpowers, the war would not take place quickly and effectively, and there would be a stalemate that could only be resolved by nuclear interventions. With the use of nuclear weapons, war loses its purpose because it would destroy many resources otherwise sought to be conquered, alienated or seized. However, on the other hand, if the war is waged by two states that do not belong to the superpowers and are not allowed to use nuclear weapons because the superpowers prevent them from doing so, paramilitary formations appear as an effective means of clearing lebensraum and achieving accompanying goals such as looting, facilities and other infrastructure that testify to the existence and life of a people or ethnic group on the attacked territories.

Paramilitary formations appear as a means and tool of the state that is not subject to any sanctions, and has seemingly free hands for committing war crimes and genocide. Although paramilitary formations appear to operate independently, this is not the case. Their ideology, actions, activities and thoughts are the product of an aggressive state elite that seeks to destroy others in their surroundings in order to obtain the resources they need to mitigate their own downfall and the decadence of the state, society and nation.

1. Special war, its methods and activities

The modern, technologically - technically advanced age, as well as the states that have overcome certain concepts of narrow - minded and archaic thinking, that is, regional and global powers, are directing their own efforts in waging wars of the new generation. War is a comprehensive and intense conflict of states, military alliances or various social forces (structures) within one state, in which military force is used mutually, en masse and in an organized manner in order to achieve certain political, economic and military goals (Beridan, 2008). As such, war is not a phenomenon that aims only to destroy the enemy, but also to achieve certain specific elements that help the aggressor state in its survival, protecting the state and society from other forms of threat (political, military, economic, environmental or social).

The protection of the state and society takes the form of aggressive behavior and attacks on others, in order for the own state to defend itself - to survive.

National security takes a special form in the modern world, and the threat to the state and the nation is no longer only by large armies and armies, and their frontal attacks. The means of endangerment in the modern age are much smaller in scope, but of equal or even greater destructive power. Armed conflicts can be of different nature and of course of different levels (Beridan, 2008). Consequently, wars are no longer liberating and anti-totalitarian, directed against the repression, but have become a means of creating new totalitarian regimes and of carrying out repression over the powerless. In addition, wars are no longer only based on the model of using conventional, destructive weapons, but also on unconventional methods and activities that are not large-scale, but leave significant consequences (propaganda, terrorist attacks, political assassinations, etc.).

(4)

1.1. Conceptual definition of Special war

Special warfare, as a novelty in international politics and the doctrine of warfare, enables the destruction of enemies without the use of large-scale kinetic means. The destruction of the enemy in this sense is left to methods and activities that in their active and passive action are not physically violent, that is, they do not act in a way that they destroy by the use of force.

These non-kinetic, covert methods are destructive in nature by producing in secondary action material changes that manifest themselves in violent ways within a self-destructive, targeted society, aided by foreign antagonistic actors (hostile intelligence services).

According to Muslimović (2011), special war is defined as a way and means of fighting for unjust and aggressive goals conceived by the highest institutions of the state. Its applicability is found in the elements of society, the state, politics that become the target of subversive actions of the enemy through its intelligence - security systems. The basic doctrinal work of intelligence elements in this sense is based on the idea of divide and conquer, which has proven successful for thousands of years, from Sun Tzu, Caesar, to the contemporary powerful states and mega corporations. As Muslimović (2011) further states, in local and regional frameworks, the bearers of the Special War are states that have territorial and other aggressive pretensions towards their neighbors, which they fight for by various, even illegal methods and means, and at the global level, the bearers are big powers fighting for dominance in the areas where they want to preserve, expand, just establish or retake it. Whether at the local, regional or global level, the role of the Special War is to destabilize, provoke a crisis and ultimately portray the same as a new normalcy.

Special warfare as a destructive activity, uses asymmetry as a method of destabilization, endangerment and destruction. The essence of asymmetric warfare is still unchanged today - the effort of the weaker side to achieve victory over a superior opponent by using unconventional ways of acting (Barić, 2010). A party waging a Special War and using an asymmetric doctrine does not necessarily mean that it is weaker than its opponent. The reasons for using the Special War are found in geopolitical circumstances, which arise from the application of conventional methods, war and armed conflict. In this case, it is necessary to take a number of measures that are not so easy to spot and which are on the verge of aggressive and violent behavior. In this way, sanctions and interference of other state and international actors in the affairs of the state elite, which has aggressive and antagonistic goals, are avoided.

For the purposes of the Special War, intelligence systems and services play a significant role in the application of aggressive and violent behavior without consequences. Due to their hybridity reflected in the visible and invisible, offensive and defensive, military and non- military, they have the means, capabilities and abilities to produce crises and destabilizations that cannot be directly linked to them, and these crises appear as spontaneous events without actors that have a direct benefit.

1.2. The role of intelligence services in Special war

Intelligence services in the Special War, as already mentioned, have a significant role, especially from the aspect of offensive action, which is almost impossible to see. The unconventionality and asymmetry of the activities of the intelligence services enables the intentions and clients of a certain phenomenon or event to be concealed.

The action of intelligence elements and systems in the Special War as a form of new generation war is linked to the use of both kinetic and non-kinetic measures and activities, which produce various social phenomena and changes. Intelligence services, as specific, specialized, highly professional and relatively independent institution of society (Masleša, 2001), have sufficient resources, power, personnel, finances and other essential elements to wage war. In Technium Social Sciences Journal

Vol. 18, 508-517, April, 2021 ISSN: 2668-7798 www.techniumscience.com

(5)

this way, they themselves create the environment - whether political, social, economic or otherwise - to justify the use of kinetic or non-kinetic means and measures. Seemingly, kinetic measures and activities seem like counterproductive and ineffective means, but with good preparation of the intelligence field and the creation of a specific political and social climate, kinetic measures can bring many benefits. In certain situations, they can serve as catalysts and initiators for great social changes, which, like fires, spread from one specific area to the entire territory of a country, region, or even the whole world.

Kinetic activities such as terrorism, diversions, sabotage, assassinations and political murders, proxy wars and similar destructive and murderous activities are in symbiosis and synergy with non-kinetic activities such as propaganda, politics and diplomacy, ideology (religion) and other instruments of destruction of states and societies. Special War has its success in effectively combining kinetic and non-kinetic that complement each other and help achieve goals. Sometimes the ideologues of the Special War try to end the war as quickly as possible, while in other situations, the long and continuous conduct of the Special War enables the acquisition of more resources, more power and more benefits. This depends on whether the Special War is being waged in a time of conflict or in a time of apparent peace.

As a mixture of kinetic and non-kinetic, the phenomenon of paramilitary formations also emerges, which can operate both in times of peace and in times of war.

2. Paramilitary formations – the purpose, role, characteristics and activities In order to effectively wage war, be it conventional or unconventional, or Special War, it is necessary to play outside the rules, that is, ‘in war (and love) everything is fair’. By undertaking aggressive, unjust and criminal activities, various benefits and advantages are realized, both for the aggressor state and for the state elite, which always profits in wartime circumstances. As a means, an instrument of state elites and ideologues, paramilitary formations appear as a necessary element for faster, more efficient and better achievement of goals. What the regular army must not and cannot do, either because of the immorality of the act itself or the sanctions that follow, paramilitary formations can. In this case, paramilitary formations appear as an element that bypasses many aspects and doctrines of warfare, thus ensuring through specific, illegal behavior and action - the realization of the planned goal.

2.1. Definining paramilitary formations

Paramilitary formations are formally illegal, non-state armed organizations, capable of committing violence against a part of the population in accordance with the goals of their founder in favor of the ruling structure or against it (Alispahić, 2019). As such, they primarily serve to commit violence and create specific social phenomena and changes that multiply and amplify violence, fear and hatred. Formal illegality and official distance from the state and the government, becomes an advantage for the state and the government itself, which controls and directs their work through the intelligence services.

When we talk about the concept of paramilitary formations, it is too broad and undefined, which corresponds to their coordinator and creator - the intelligence service. The U.S. Department of Defense (2016) defines paramilitary formations as forces or groups that differ from the regular armed forces of any country, but resemble them in organization, equipment, training, or mission. Thus, the definition is vague and broad, and can mean anything from paramilitary, pro-government to anti-government structures, cartels, gangs, special units and many other formations belonging to their own or someone else's state, as well as a non- state actor (corporation, organization, etc.)

(6)

The very indefiniteness and breadth give camouflage and power, either in the sense of free operation in the territory of interest (one's own or someone else's), but also hiding behind various screens such as associations, organizations and movements. Such a way of organizing is most suitable for a period of apparent peace in which paramilitary formations exist simultaneously in two states, as an aggressor - a military person and as a civilian. Their purpose in this case becomes destruction, not only on the physical and material level, but also on the abstract level relating to the mind, thought and soul. It is destruction on two fronts, the physical and the abstract, that helps to achieve any goal created by the political top and elites. Through the existence of paramilitary formations, the state gained many benefits, and the Machiavellian concept of goal justifies the means, enables the state to achieve goals that it could not with the help of conventional methods.

2.2. Paramilitary formations as part of the state

Paramilitary formations do not exist for themselves, do not form spontaneously and are not harmless at all. As a secret product and instrument of the state, they have their own specificities that distinguish them from some civic organizations and associations that seemingly have a similar character. However, in order to distinguish paramilitary formations from other associations, organizations or groups, it is necessary to single out certain important features that are inherent in this phenomenon.

Important features of paramilitary formations are (Alispahić, 2019):

• Existence of leadership to be under legal military command;

• Militaristic type of organization;

• Possession of weapons and readiness to use them;

• Specific source of supply;

• Existence of a socio-political basis; and

• Strong ideology.

As can be seen, paramilitary formations have much more specific features than any other social form of association. Its foundations are based on the existence of the leadership, i.e. the top cadre of the paramilitary formation which is under the legal military command. The existence of leadership can be viewed as a link between superior and subordinate, that is, paramilitary formations are attached to the legal military command as a form of control. Of course, this control serves primarily to maintain order and discipline, as well as providing instructions, training, support and logistics for the conduct of war, armed operations and actions.

Also, paramilitary formations have a militaristic type of organization, that is, a clearly established hierarchical structure. Paramilitary formations are not egalitarian, democratic groups whose members have the same rights, responsibilities and the like, but specialized groups ruled by strict discipline and hierarchy. They are essentially military organizations, whose purpose is destruction.

The next item related to paramilitary formations is both the possession of weapons and the readiness to use them. Weapons are an integral part of both military and paramilitary formations, that is, an instrument of coercion and force and violence. It is essential for carrying out various activities that achieve the goals of the Special War, such as: kidnappings, murders, attacks on state institutions, attacks on police, military and other bodies, use of force and coercion, occupation of certain territories or facilities or intimidation of certain societies and nations. Weapons are often a decisive factor in the fight of paramilitary formations against the state and state bodies and institutions. We must look at this in the form of modern, sophisticated and expensive weapons such as drones, rocket launchers, anti-tank missiles, guided missiles (heat-seeking missiles), heavy machine guns, grenade launchers and others that greatly Technium Social Sciences Journal

(7)

contribute to the fight against the regular army, which is often less equipped and armed, but also security forces such as the police, its intervention units, militias and security agencies.

In order to achieve the goals of the Special War, but also the plans for action, activities and work of paramilitary formations, significant financial assistance and supplies are needed.

Paramilitary formations are often financed from certain secret channels, black funds and donations from those who ‘believe’ in their goal. However, significant support in the supply of weapons and equipment, as well as financial resources, comes from the intelligence service, which directly controls them. Financial resources and other forms of supply (weapons, equipment, training, transport) are a significant control factor that ensures that the internal structure of the paramilitary formation or its parts does not become too strong and renegade.

Paramilitary formations cannot be formed just like that, so a certain catalyst is needed for their creation. This is most often caused by the socio-political situation in the state creating the paramilitary formation, as well as the socio-political situation in the target state. Special war finds a means to achieve certain goals and obtain resources without the use of large and open conflict in paramilitary formations that are relatively easy to form and fill with manpower, but also rejected after performing tasks in which the commission of crimes. The internal climate of the state, as well as the aggressive, war-mongering policy of the state, achieves nationalist tendencies among the wider masses and enables the ranks of the paramilitary formation to be filled quickly. Sociopolitical basis supports aggressive state in justifying the activities (crimes) that will be carried out by paramilitary formations. Internal turmoil in the target state or within one's own state, if certain political groups interfere, allows the use of paramilitary formations in all their forms, whether it is a confrontation with dissidents and the use of force, all the way to complex, propaganda operations in which paramilitary formations are portrayed as liberators from tyranny, fighters for the rights of people - citizens.

As an important item related to paramilitary formations is a solid ideology. The paramilitary formations themselves, as specific organizations, maintain their internal cohesion and connection on the basis of a common ideology and goal. The ideology that governs such organizations is often nationalist and extremist, and that is why its existence is possible. Due to the pronounced note of extremism and nationalism, paramilitary formations attract different types of people who have one thing in common, and that is hatred towards others, whether it is ethnicity, nationality, religion or some other identifying factor.

In the midst of the Cold War, proxy actors from East and West, guided by the ideology of their creators and masterminds (liberalism and communism), were used to confront each other. As an example of this we have various paramilitary formations, death squads, which were specific to the area of Latin America and Europe. It was these death squads, i.e. paramilitary formations financed, trained and equipped by powerful - strong states, that committed various crimes against the domicile population under the pretext of fighting communism (Krishnan, 2018).

2.3. Activities of paramilitary formations

When it comes to the activities of paramilitary formations, they can be broad-spectrum.

The use of force and coercion is the basis of their actions. The manifestation of force is expressed through activities ranging from physical intimidation and acting as physical security for certain political figures within an aggressive state, waging guerrilla warfare against the attacked state and its regular army, all the way to committing real crimes and genocide. The paramilitary formations themselves, due to their indefiniteness and lack of a clear form, act in extremely aggressive ways. Aggression, crimes, culturicide and genocide are approved because of their form as a non-state, seemingly independent actor not controlled by the official Technium Social Sciences Journal

(8)

government. Often, war crimes and other crimes by proxy actors are downplayed as accidental events that occur because of ‘a few bad guys taking advantage of a situation of social chaos’

(Krishnan, 2018, p. 157).

Also, after the crimes and genocide committed by the state and the government that control the paramilitary formations, they can always cease to exist, that is, quite by accident, their leadership may get caught up in a severe accident or find itself under enemy fire. Of course, the death of the supreme command staff of paramilitary formations is not a coincidence but an action of the state to get rid of possible witnesses, big mouths and other loose ends.

3. Modern war

Modern war and armed conflict are both global and local. If we look at the current geopolitical situation, the Middle East is the scene of many conflicts that are reflected on a global scale and leave many consequences. Local problems as conflicts of a large number of actors (Syria, Libya, Iraq) have produced many global problems such as mass migration, terrorism, economic crisis, oil industry crisis and others. Due to the complexity of the conflicts in the Middle East, the involvement of various actors who do not originate from this area, is an important factor in maintaining and prolonging these conflicts.

3.1. The role of paramilitary formations in war

During the so-called During the Arab Spring, Libya and Syria realized the importance of paramilitary formations, both from the aspect of their own pro-government formations, and from the aspect of paramilitary formations created and financed by the enemy. The role of pro- government and paramilitary formations in proxy wars is too crucial to be neglected. Proxy war is only one of the means for indirect intervention in the affairs of another state (Groh, 2019, p.

27), thus achieving the successful implementation of the methods and activities of the Special War. An indirect invasion on the enemy with the help of paramilitary formations can be considered as effective as an invasion by a regular army without the consequences and dangers that may arise in that case. In order to carry out the mentioned invasions and aggressions, it is necessary to form different paramilitary formations that have different roles. In our opinion, paramilitary formations can be divided into six different groups, each of which serves a special purpose and purpose depending on different factors. Factors influencing the formation and special choice of forms of paramilitary formation are related to the territory, sociopolitical organization and relations, form of conflict and war, goals of the state that finances paramilitary formations and benefits arising from conflict and war.

Paramilitary formations can be divided as follows:

• Mercenaries (private military companies);

• Guerrillas;

• Insurgents;

• Volunteers;

• Special units and special purpose detachments;

• Terrorist cells.

3.1.1.Mercenaries and private military companies

Mercenaries (PMC), as a specific grouping, represent a powerful proxy actor who often has strong government logistical, financial, and intelligence support behind it. The purpose of mercenary forces is to create a special environment and climate within the target state in order to achieve goals such as prolonging conflict through the commission of various crimes against civilians. The prolongation of the conflict is aimed at the military - industrial complex whose Technium Social Sciences Journal

(9)

survival is directly related to the war that feeds this monster. These groups, as paramilitary formations, create significant social and political changes in the territory in which they are located, and their activities are not possible without the participation of the intelligence system of the country to which they belong, that is, from which they come.

3.1.2. Guerrilla groups and rebels

Guerrilla warfare became a political phenomenon in the mid-twentieth century, which, like the wind of revolution, triggered both hope and fear on three continents (Taber, 2002).

Guerrilla activity, as a specific doctrine of asymmetric warfare, is a powerful weapon in destabilizing and creating a crisis in a certain area. Guerrilla groups, as special combat elements, do not belong to the official government and the state, but are financed and supported by large and powerful states. Of course, guerrilla warfare is also associated with insurgents who, as irregular, anti-state forces, receive specific help from outside, by great powers that seek to win the war without using their own army.

3.1.3. Volunteers

Volunteers, as a special form of paramilitary formations, have a significant role, both in a state of peace and in a state of war. The idea behind their formation is presented as an association of the best sons to protect the homeland, however, the situation is completely different. The role of volunteers as paramilitary formations is more often than not reflected in the commission of genocide, culturicide, robberies and confrontation with dissidents from their own ranks. Volunteers, as a form of paramilitary structure in times of war and conflict, are filled mostly with criminals and others, who, like cannon fodder and muscles, serve political and party structures for mutual confrontations.

3.1.4. Special forces

Special units and detachments for special purposes, as integral parts of intelligence services (Alispahić, 2019), are used for a different range of activities, whether it is anti- terrorism, sabotage, assassinations, training of paramilitary formations or similar. The aspect of special units as paramilitary formations is linked to special operations, i.e. according to the US Department of Defense (2016), special operations are operations that require unique ways of using tactical techniques, equipment and training, often performed in hostile, forbidden or politically sensitive environments and are characterized by one or more of the following: time sensitive framework, secrecy, poor visibility, conducted with and/or by domestic forces, requiring regional expertise and/or a high degree of risk. The symbiosis of special units and intelligence services is very narrow.

3.1.5. Terrorist groups and cells

Terrorist groups and cells are also a form of paramilitary formation. As a specific element for the implementation of violence, they significantly affect governments and society around the world. The mobility they have, as well as other characteristics of paramilitary formations such as strong ideology, possession of weapons, sources of supply and others, enables the mentioned actor to appear as an important factor in waging an asymmetric war, not only locally and regionally, but also globally. Schmidt and Mardsen (2011) define terrorism as a method of struggle in which accidental or symbolic victims serve as an instrumental target of violence. Violence becomes a currency of power, a means of creating changes that suit certain political structures.

(10)

3.2. Intelligence service and paramilitary formations

Intelligence in a time of modern, unconventional and asymmetric war, plays a significant role. Intelligence services, as important elements for national security, operate in both times of peace and war, without significant changes in their work. In peace, as in war, there is always an enemy, either potential or real, that seeks to threaten or destroy the state, the people, and the way of life. The role of intelligence services is to discover the intentions of the enemy, and to oppose them through countermeasures. On the other hand, the behavior of the intelligence services during the war also has its aggressive, threatening character. Using the available means (people, technology, politics, etc.), the intelligence services penetrate the enemy's rear, which significantly affects their ability to wage war.

As it has already been said, modern war is no longer just an armed conflict, but it is also becoming a conflict at the level of economy, politics and society, and it is necessary to use the potential of intelligence services in these areas as well. A period of apparent and negative peace, it allows the intelligence services to act in a destabilizing and destructive way. The wars of the new generation are not only focused on physical destruction, but also on aspects of mental and moral (Lind & Thiele, 2015), which completes the circle of absolute destruction of a state and its people.

In order to achieve absolute destruction, intelligence services engage paramilitary and/or pro-government formations, which, in addition to physical destruction, also destroy on a metaphysical level. The symbiosis between the intelligence services and paramilitary and/or pro-government formations is based on the benefits that the state and its governing structures have from a parastatal actor who acts aggressively in all its forms. Whether it is intimidation or killing, the state achieves its intentions and goals through intelligence.

Intelligence services become a mediator between the state and its political elite, which have the goals of survival and destruction of the opposition within their own state, all the way to the destruction of local, regional and global enemies. Paramilitary formations such as mercenaries (PMC), volunteers, special units or terrorist groups, serve to maintain the power of the ruling elites, primarily on their own territory, but also on someone else's, which they themselves define as the enemy. In that case, the enemy becomes anyone whose existence endangers the survival of the elites and threatens their totalitarian system of government.

Conclusion

Modern warfare requires a major turn in the choice of doctrines and ways of destroying the enemy. The use of regular armies alone is not enough, and the use of other security elements is essential. Intelligence services, as highly specialized and powerful institutions, are emerging as a new player, having enough power to influence political, military, social and other outcomes.

Their role in the Special War, as a new generation war, is key to success and the provision of resources, which are the basic reasons for the war in the consumerist era.

Special warfare, as a form of threat at the local, regional, and global levels, could not be possible without intelligence services, which create and coordinate many elements, whether kinetic or non-kinetic. The element that unites both kinetic and non-kinetic methods and activities is reflected in the form of paramilitary formations, which due to their specific nature are widely used. Thus, they represent a very powerful and effective weapon of the intelligence services in the Special War, which can almost never fail. The complexity of the system of action and the symbiosis of kinetic/non-kinetic methods and activities, enables almost imperceptible aggressive action of the state and its top, whose intentions are expressed through the intelligence services and their subordinate elements. Paramilitary formations, as an instrument of the Technium Social Sciences Journal

(11)

intelligence service and the state as a whole, are almost irreplaceable in modern times, when the sanctions of the international community can threaten any state.

The existence of an element of separation of paramilitary formations from the state, really enables the achievement of various aggressive goals such as the occupation of territory or the alienation of resources (oil, drinking water, gold). According to the goal, paramilitary formations get their hands free from the state leadership, and after the end of the activities, they get protection. However, sometimes paramilitary formations also serve as scapegoats in order to save the state leadership from the sanctions of the international community.

Modern warfare is waged by small and mobile, operational-tactical elements, which possess sufficient state support and certain protections (at least not openly) to change the geopolitical paradigm and make significant changes and phenomena in society. A special war as a model of war in which the intelligence services have primacy, will also take over dominance when it comes to accessing resources and dealing with enemies. These two elements will pose a significant threat to the free and liberal world by totalitarian regimes that do not respect human life and dignity, and it is therefore necessary to understand these elements in order to possibly oppose them.

References

[1] Alispahić, B. (2019). Metodika rada obavještajno-sigurnosnih službi. Sarajevo: Fakultet za kriminalistiku, kriminologiju i sigurnosne studije Univerziteta u Sarajevu.

[2] Barić, G. S. (2010). Vojne strategije i asimetrično ratovanje. National Security and the Future, 1, 11-163.

[3] Beridan, I. (2008). Politika i sigurnost. Sarajevo: Fakultet političkih nauka, UNSA.

[4] Department of Defense. (2016). Department of Defense Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms. Washington D.C.: Department of Defense.

[5] Groh, T. L. (2019). Proxy War: The Least Bad Option. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press.

[6] Krishnan, A. (2018). Why Paramilitary Operations Fail. Geenville, NC: Palgrave MacMillan.

[7] Lind, W. S., & Thiele, G. A. (2015). 4th Generation Warfare Handbook. Kouvola, Finland: Castalia House.

[8] Marsden, S. V., & Schmid, A. P. (2011). Typologies of Terrorism and Political Violence.

U A. P. Schmid, The Routledge Handbook of Terrorism Research. 158-200: The Routledge.

[9] Masleša, R. (2001). Teorije i sistemi sigurnosti. Sarajevo.

[10] Muhić, E. (2020). Obavještajno - sigurnosna služba i odnos sa specijalnim ratom (Magistarski rad). Sarajevo.

[11] Muslimović, F. (2011). Specijalni rat. Sarajevo: Udruženje za zaštitu tekovina borbe za Bosnu i Hercegovinu.

[12] Scahill, J. (2008). Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army.

New York: Nation Books.

[13] Taber, R. (2002). War of The Flea. Washington D.C:: Brassey's Inc.