https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_doctrine https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_doctrine - Military doctrine is the expression of how military forces con

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_doctrine https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_doctrine - Military doctrine is the expression of how military forces contribute to campaigns, major operations, battles, and engagements. MAD is a game theory construct. It may inform doctrine, but it doesn't actually dictate how we employ forces. US doctrine can be found in the nuclear posture review : https://media.defense.gov/2018/Feb/02/2001872877/-1/-1/1/EXECUTIVE-SUMMARY.PDF https://media.defense.gov/2018/Feb/02/2001872877/-1/-1/1/EXE... It amounts to : the primary point of the US arsenal is deterrence. As such, we will assure that we can destroy the enemy as necessary. Russian doctrine had explicitly contemplated the first use of nuclear weapons "in response to large-scale aggression utilizing conventional weapons in situations critical to the national security of the Russian Federation." So if they get in a war and start losing. The critical part of MAD is a so called balance of terror. But the US doesn't use nuclear weapons because it's afraid of getting nuked in return, and Russia believes that they can win a nuclear war. So it's both not doctrine (because it's not how either military plans to use forces) and not real (because the preconditions don't exist).