4 definitions
A Crisis (n.) has its taproot in the move that looked benign to those who made it, such as expanding an alliance to the border of a great power.
A Doctrine (n.) like Monroe's is not defensive: it forbids even distant powers a foothold and punishes a small neighbor for successful defiance.
Nuclear weapons (n.) teach their own lesson: had Iraq or Serbia possessed them, the United States might never have gone to war.
Understanding (n.) another power's logic need not mean approving its acts; it means asking what we would do if the situation were reversed.