What concept refers to the idea that the threat of nuclear war prevents actual conflict?

The concept that specifically refers to the idea that the threat of nuclear war prevents actual conflict is known as Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD). MAD is a military doctrine and a national security strategy that posits that if two opposing sides both possess enough nuclear weaponry to destroy each other, the certainty of total annihilation serves as a strong deterrent against either side initiating a conflict. The rationale behind MAD is that no rational actor would initiate a nuclear war if it knew that doing so would result in its own destruction.

In the context of the Cold War, MAD played a crucial role in maintaining a tense peace between the United States and the Soviet Union, as both superpowers recognized that any attempt to use nuclear weapons would lead to mutually catastrophic consequences. This understanding helped to prevent direct military engagements that could escalate into nuclear war, despite numerous proxy conflicts and tensions during the period.

While the other options touch on related themes in security and military strategy, they do not encapsulate the specific idea of mutual destruction as a deterrent as succinctly as MAD does. For instance, containment refers to a U.S. strategy aimed at preventing the spread of communism, deterrence strategy encompasses a broader approach to prevent an adversary from taking hostile action, and Cold