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.