This research is a study of the organizational and legal framework for preventing corruption in military administration. Based on the analysis of scientific and legal sources, five stages of development of the understanding of the category "corruption" are distinguished: a) archaic, b) formation of ethical components of management, c) primitivization, d) "de-ethnicization" of corruption", and e) legal support for virtuous behavior. The author characterizes the scientific paradigms of studying the phenomenon of corruption in accordance with deviant, revisionist, behaviorist, law-making, conventional, cratological, criminal law and economic approaches.
The range of restrictions and prohibitions as legal means of preventing corruption, as well as the specifics of applying such restrictions to military personnel are characterized.
The paper examines the specifics of corruption in the area of military service and presents the author's understanding of the essence of discretionary powers and conflict of interest, and their correlation with modern organizational and legal aspects of military service.
The research further develops the characterization of the criteria for the effectiveness of preventing and combating corruption offenses in the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine and the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The article examines the international legal standards for building integrity and organizing prevention and counteraction to corruption in the defense forces and finds out that the importance of integrity for the development of public relations is related to three main factors. First, the formation of a new model of professional efficiency requires not only reducing the impact of corruption risks, but also maximizing the productivity of military personnel in the performance of their tasks, which requires high motivation and initiative, as well as a developed sense of responsibility for their duties. Thus, integrity combines not only prohibitive legal means (such as the prohibition to be exposed to corruption risks), but also regulatory ones (the essence of the latter is to regulate social relations in order to achieve the goals of legal regulation - to increase the defense capability of our state). Secondly, the importance of integrity for Ukraine's security and defense sector is related to the rather large size of the defense budget, and even a minor violation of legal requirements results in large expenditures of public funds. The third factor that determines the important role of integrity in the military administration is the maintenance of high credibility of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and other military formations among the population. It is the integrity in the activities of the military command and control bodies that makes it possible to increase the efficiency of performing their tasks and functions, as well as to maximize the involvement of Ukrainian citizens in the conscious fulfillment of their constitutional duty to protect Ukraine.
The scope of improvement of legal regulation in the system of preventing corruption in the military administration is determined, which should include:
a) systematic assessment of corruption risks at the internal and external levels, which requires changes in the methodology for assessing corruption risks; b) reduction of the impact of factors related to conflicts of interest, which requires differentiation of discretionary powers into those covered by combat immunity and those related to the ordinary activities of military units and military command and control bodies; c) formation of zero tolerance to corruption among military personnel in accordance with two main vectors: fostering a high level of integrity of military personnel and strengthening intra-departmental corporate ethics with an anti-corruption focus; d) proper information support for preventing and combating corruption, including reducing the influence of commanders/chiefs on personnel appointments in subordinate units by automating and anonymizing military personnel data in the newly created Military Career Center, use of information technologies to ensure mandatory rotation of military personnel every five years to higher, lower or equivalent positions; e) expanding the role of the public in the anti-corruption system.
It is recommended to make changes and amendments to the Law of Ukraine "On National Security of Ukraine", "On Preventing Corrupt Practices", "On Army of Ukraine", "On National Guard", and "Regulation of State Special Transport Service".
Keywords: national legislation, corruption, prevention of corruption, anti-corruption activity, corruption offenses, corruption risks, security and defense sector, military authorities, integrity, defense ministry, military personnel, discretionary powers, conflict of interest, declaration, whistle-blowers, professional ethics, military service, public administration, martial law, Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, Armed Forces of Ukraine
