Sentence:  The episode tended to confirm the U. S. belief that propaganda , the hope of one-sided concessions , and the chance to split the Allies , rather than genuine negotiation , <WSD>were</WSD> the Soviet leader 's real aims in summitry . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  have the quality of being; (copula, used with an adjective or a predicate noun)