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What follows is an attempt to explore the nature of moral discourse as at applies to nation-states and to relate this discussion to some of the policies and purposes of, the North Atlantic Treaty Alliance. It should be noted that I have not introduced the "moral element" into the NATO debate; moral claims have been made for and by the organization itself during the course of its development.A first assumption about moral discourse, as the term is used here, is that the assessment of the moral element in a policy or an institution is a critical task, not an apologetic one. A second assumption follows from the practice of "public diplomacy": It is morally dubious to engage in the deception of oneself or of one's constituents where goals are concerned.

In this discussion of Wars of National Liberation I will be concerned more with ethical method than with setting forth policy implications and conclusions, I shall develop this method around six points of reference: (1) the phase of ethical reflection, (2) levels of analysis arid responsibility, (3) examination of assumptions, (4) analysis of wars o£ national liberation, (5) exploration of criteria of justice, and (6) suggestions for policy.The Phases of Ethical Reflection, Etlucal reflection would seem to require three overlapping phases that are, hopefully, cumulative. There is first the examination of stance or perspective, the bringing of assumptions into the open, the questioning of stated goals in terms of their real intent. At the least, this means self-awareness and openness; at the most it becomes the road to repentance. The second phase is that of assessing the situation, exploring options and possible consequences. It is worth noting that our assumptions significantly influence our definition of the nature of the problem and color our judgment of risks. The constructive phase seeks to relate the criticized norms to the assessment of the situation, to draw out the implications as guides to policy decisions, to keep ends and means in some kind of harmony.

Fadier John Courtney Murray, in die May issue of Worldview, defined the real issue of "Morality and Foreign Policy" as die nature of morality itself. He defined die debate between die "old" and "new" moralities as an intramural one within Protestantism, and Protestant moralists are by definition unable to use the resources of natural law.