Your obligations as a US citizen and a member of the Armed Forces result from the traditional values that underlie the American experience as a nation. These values are best expressed in the US Constitution and Bill of Rights, which you have sworn to uphold and defend. You would have these obligations—to your country, your Service and unit, and your fellow Americans—even if the Code of Conduct had never been formulated as a high standard of general behavior.

The Convention was adopted by the Diplomatic Conference for the Establishment of International Conventions for the Protection of Victiims of War, held at Geneva from 21 April to 12 August 1949. It was signed on 12 August 1949.

The UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (SPT) is one of the United Nations mechanisms directed to the prevention of torture and other forms of ill-treatment. It started its work in February 2007. The OPCAT gives the SPT the right to visit all places of detention in those States and examine the treatment of people held there.

The third Geneva Convention provides a wide range of protection for prisoners of war. It defines their rights and sets down detailed rules for their treatment and eventual release. International humanitarian law (IHL) also protects other persons deprived of liberty as a result of armed conflict.

The Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ, 64 Stat. 109, 10 U.S.C. Chapter 47), is the foundation of military law in the United States. It was established by the United States Congress in accordance with the authority given by the United States Constitution in Article I, Section 8, which provides that "The Congress shall have Power . . . To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval forces."

Although one of the Powers in conflict may not be a party to the present Convention, the Powers who are parties thereto shall remain bound by it in their mutual relations. They shall furthermore be bound by the Convention in relation to the said Power, if the latter accepts and applies the provisions thereof.

A not-for-profit, Congressionally-chartered, veterans’ service organization advocating for former prisoners of war and their families. Established April 14, 1942.

The Crimes of War Project is a collaboration of journalists, lawyers and scholars dedicated to raising public awareness of the laws of war and their application to situations of conflict. Our goal is to promote understanding of international humanitarian law among journalists, policymakers, and the general public, in the belief that a wider knowledge of the legal framework governing armed conflict will lead to greater pressure to prevent breaches of the law, and to punish those who commit them.

Armed conflict is as old as humankind itself. There have always been customary practices in war, but only in the last 150 years have States made international rules to limit the effects of armed conflict for humanitarian reasons. The Geneva Conventions and the Hague Conventions are the main examples. Usually called international humanitarian law (IHL), it is also known as the law of war or the law of armed conflict.

"Keeping the Promise," Fulfill their Trust," and "No one left behind" are several of many mottos that refer to the efforts of the Department of Defense to recover those who became missing while serving our nation. The mission requires expertise in archival research, intelligence collection and analysis, field investigations and recoveries and scientific laboratories.