US conducted 23 'proxy wars' in world under veil of counterterrorism missions: Report

The United States has used a secretive procedure called ‘127e’ to launch at least 23 “proxy wars” across the globe since 2017, claimed an Intercept report citing exclusive documents and interviews with more than a dozen current and former government officials. It was previously known that Pentagon (US Department of Defence) used the secretive 127e authority in multiple African countries, but the latest document has reportedly suggested that at least 14 127e programmes were also active in the greater Middle East and the Asia-Pacific region as recently as 2020.

“In total, between 2017 and 2020, U.S. commandos conducted at least 23 separate 127e programmes across the world,” the report has claimed.

Furthermore, The Intercept cited a retired four-star Army general who headed both Special Operations Command and Central Command, Joseph Votel as confirming the existence of previously unrevealed 127e “counterterrorism” efforts in Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen. Another official confirmed a similar operation in Iraq, on the condition of anonymity. 127e or “127-echo” is a funding authority that allows the US army to conduct counterterrorism operations “by, with, and through” foreign and irregular partner forces in the world. 

What is 127e?

As per the report, though 127e, the United States not only arms but also trains and provides intelligence to foreign forces. However, unlike the traditional foreign assistance programmes which are aimed at building local capacity, the 127e partners are then dispatched on US-directed missions and target American enemies to achieve the country’s aims.

The report quoted a former senior defence official involved with the programme as saying, “The foreign participants in a 127-echo programme are filling gaps that we don’t have enough Americans to fill…If someone were to call a 127-echo programme a proxy operation, it would be hard to argue with them.” The retired generals with knowledge about the authority have noted that it is ‘extremely effective’ in targeting militant groups while reducing risk to US forces. But, officials told The Intercept that the use of the programme raises accountability and oversight concerns and potentially violates the US Constitution.

“One of the documents obtained by The Intercept puts the cost of 127e operations between 2017 and 2020 at $310 million, a fraction of U.S. military spending over that time period but a significant increase from the $25 million budget allocated to the programme when it was first authorsed, under a different name, in 2005,” the report claimed.

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