NOW NATIONS NEGOTIATE

States have been negotiating for as long as they have been going to war. et, while the study of warfare has been intense and prodigious, negotiation as an art has received less concentrated attention. Writing under the auspices of the Harvard's Center for International Affairs and with a background in the problems of disarmament acquired at the Rand Corporation, Mr. Ikle takes on the task of analyzing the strategies and tactics of diplomacy. He holds no brief for negotiation as intrinsically good, and has little or no objection to bluffing, or practically anything else, provided it works. He feels that the West should apply the bluff more and should not be so reluctant to make counter-demands and to set ""unacceptable"" goals, because such practices could give us more maneuverability and a fairer chance at advantageous compromises. He finds that the Soviets, contrary to popular opinion, are ""bold rather than shrewd, brazen rather than cunning"" around the conference table. A final chapter, pinpointing and comparing weaknesses and strengths on both sides, is lucid, provocative, and hardly flattering to anyone concerned. From this vantage point, the cutaway coat and top hat do not appear to be in the best of form.