This work assembles a group of distinguished scholars to grapple with the matter of how the United States, its allies, and its friends must size up the strategies, doctrines, and force structures currently taking shape if they are to design responses that reinforce deterrence amid vastly more complex strategic circumstances. By focusing sharply on strategy -- that is, on how states use doomsday weaponry for political gain -- the book distinguishes itself from familiar net assessments emphasizing quantifiable factors like hardware, technical characteristics, and manpower. While the emphasis varies from chapter to chapter, contributors pay special heed to the logistical, technological, and social dimensions of strategy alongside the specifics of force structure and operations. They never lose sight of the human factor -- the pivotal factor in diplomacy, strategy, and war.

Introduction /Toshi Yoshihara and James R. Holmes -- After proliferation: deterrence theory and emerging nuclear powers / Joshua Rovner -- South Africa's nuclear strategy: deterring "total onslaught" and "nuclear blackmail" in three stages / Helen E. Purkitt and Stephen F. Burgess -- The future of Chinese nuclear strategy / Christopher T. Yeaw, Andrew S. Erickson, and Michael S. Chase -- North Korea's nuclear weapons program: motivations, strategy, and doctrine / Terence Roehrig -- Changing perceptions of extended deterrence in Japan / James L. Schoff -- Thinking about the unthinkable: Tokyo's nuclear option / James R. Holmes and Toshi Yoshihara -- India's nuclear strategy / Anupam Srivastava and Seema Gahlaut -- The future of India's undersea nuclear deterrent / Andrew C. Winner -- Pakistan's nuclear posture: thinking about the unthinkable? / Timothy D. Hoyt -- Regime type, nuclear reversals, and nuclear strategy: the ambiguous case of Iran / Scott A. Jones and James R. Holmes -- Conclusion: thinking about strategy in the second nuclear age / Toshi Yoshihara and James R. Holmes.