Mutual Assured Destruction

American  

noun

1. a U.S. doctrine of reciprocal deterrence resting on the U.S. and Soviet Union each being able to inflict unacceptable damage on the other in retaliation for a nuclear attack.

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Example Sentences

Since the U.S. and the Soviet Union blundered into their nuclear suicide pact in the 1950s, it has come to be known as Mutual Assured Destruction, or MAD.

From Salon • Mar. 30, 2022

Washington, by contrast, is completely defenseless to missile attack, in keeping with the spirit of Mutual Assured Destruction.

From Time Magazine Archive

But one broader element intrigued him: the question of whether there was any realistic alternative to Mutual Assured Destruction.

From Time Magazine Archive

Cause: traditional deterrence, which relies on the suicide pact of Mutual Assured Destruction.

From Time Magazine Archive

Scott viewed it as a high tech MAD - Mutual Assured Destruction, com- puter wise.

From Terminal Compromise: computer terrorism: when privacy and freedom are the victims: a novel by Schwartau, Winn