trying to achieve so many objectives at once, Western strate- gists have twisted clear, logical policies into incoherent doctrines, "muddling" issues for everyone.
So much the better, says Betts, a senior Brookings Fellow. He be- lieves that policy inconsistency can be a virtue, that a little cloudiness in its defense doctrines gives the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) more room to maneuver in the event of a crisis.
The chief contradiction, Betts contends, is that "what...