Modern nuclear-armed competitors require a new US approach to managing escalation
By: Madison A. Estes  
In 2020, it would be out of touch with reality to deny that the risk of a nuclear exchange is on the rise because of strategic competition, technologies that open new escalation pathways, and the collapse of arms control.
Russia and China, as well as North Korea, all view strategic competition with the United States as having a nuclear dimension that is not confined to high-end warfare. Even if nuclear weapons are never detonated in a regional conflict, military planners need to anticipate that they will be used as tools for coercion, blackmail or brinkmanship.
But despite these rising risks, the United States does not have — and urgently needs — a methodical concept for managing escalation.
https://www.defensenews.com/opinion/commentary/2020/09/30/modern-nuclear-armed-competitors-require-a-new-us-approach-to-managing-escalation/
