Sea Control

Sea Control 588: Outsourcing Security at Sea with Pieter Zhao

Episode Summary

Pieter Zhao joins the program to discuss his article, “Outsourcing Security at Sea—The Return of Private Maritime-Security Companies and Their Role in Twenty-First-Century Maritime Security.” He discusses the growing role of private maritime-security companies in the modern world and situations where they could provide maritime security. Pieter W.G. Zhao is a PhD Researcher and Junior Lecturer at the Erasmus University in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, focusing on history and international relations in the maritime domain. He is also a Nonresident Fellow at the Irregular Warfare Initiative. His doctoral research analyzes the changing dynamics in the 21st-century maritime warfare and security environment from an applied historical perspective, focusing on non-state actors and irregular warfare at sea. J. Overton is co-host of the Sea Control podcast and edited the essay collection “Seapower by Other Means: Naval Contributions to National Objectives Beyond Sea Control, Power Projection, and Traditional Service Missions.”

Episode Notes

1. "Outsourcing Security at Sea—The Return of Private Maritime-Security Companies and Their Role in Twenty-First-Century Maritime Security," by Pieter Zhao, Naval War College Review, Winter 2024.

2. Irregular Warfare Initiative.

3. Pieter Zhao LinkedIn.

4. Pieter Zhao BlueSky.

5. Pieter Zhao Contact Page.