United Nations Human Rights Council

54^th session

Working Group on the use of mercenaries as a means of violating human rights and impeding the exercise of the right of peoples to self-determination

19 September 2023

EU Intervention

Mister President,

The European Union thanks the Working Group for their report. 

As stated in the report, it has been with concern that the Working Group has observed increasingly systematised, including predatory, methods of the recruitment, also online, of mercenaries, which increases the risk of serious violations and abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law in armed conflict contexts. Reportedly, States and non-State actors are recruiting mercenaries and mercenary-related individuals.

As we already highlighted in the previous sessions, the roles and actions of mercenaries, a category specifically defined in international law, should not be confused with the activities of private military and private security companies, the use of which is legitimate and advisable in certain circumstances.

The European Union remains deeply concerned that some of these non-State actors and unregulated private military and security entities, in particular the Wagner Group, armed group affiliated to Russia, have undertaken an increasingly destabilising role in various parts of the world and, as documented and condemned by the UN and civil society organisations, are involved in serious human rights abuses and serious violations of international humanitarian law such as war crimes, the looting of natural resources, and the intimidation, torture and killing of civilians.

Chair-Rapporteur, 

In this regard, how can the international community ensure that the perpetrators from unregulated private military and security entities, such as the Wagner Group, are held accountable for their human rights abuses and violations of international humanitarian law in various parts of the world?

I thank you.