ABSTRACTIn this article, I examine the extent to which military officers are morally responsible for the actions of others by virtue of shared membership in various groups. I argue that career military officers share membership in morally relevant groups that include their branch of service, Department of Defense and the entire Executive Branch of Government, and I outline the circumstances under which career officers bear moral culpability for the actions of members of this group. A number of implications arise from (...) these findings. The first and most important is that military officers have an interest in ensuring the moral rectitude of government agents specifically as it pertains to their official capacities. Additionally, military officers have a duty not only to be informed about problematic government policies but also to educate themselves on the pertinent legal jurisprudence or ethical considerations. Finally, the Constitutional Paradigm of Military Ethics may be an insufficient guide for the part.. (shrink)

Army values are the corporate values of the military organization, which guide military personnel, helping them fulfill their military duty to protect national interests, and maintain the security and defense of their state. This article explores ideas about army values and their content among Ukrainian combatants. The army values that ensure the unity of Ukrainian military personnel around their chosen profession and the performance of military duty are moral and physical courage, professionalism, self-discipline, honesty, loyalty, teamwork, dignity, and fortitude. Proponents (...) of a “corporate” military ethics prefer army values that allow for consolidating military personnel around these values, ensuring a sense of belonging to their military organization and their value base. Proponents of an “individual” military ethics are guided by army values based on personal courage and responsibility. The results of our study about army values and their structure will allow us to form and improve the military culture of military personnel, as well as their professional competence and readiness to perform their duties both in peacetime and – at the time of writing – during combat operations. (shrink)