deterrence

Seeing that their deterrence against the U.S. had failed and their own facilities were already in ruins, Iran’s leaders might hesitate before retaliating against those of the Saudis and other Gulf neighbors.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

Doing so would require command and control structures capable of making rapid nuclear decisions, conventional deterrence to prevent strikes on nuclear facilities and developing missile-deliverable warheads, which Iran currently lacks, nuclear experts say.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026

Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs said later that France's President Emmanuel Macron had agreed to start talks on Latvia's "accession to the French nuclear deterrence initiative".

From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026

Latvian Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs also announced that France had agreed to start talks with Latvia about joining a French nuclear deterrence initiative and strengthen its military presence in Latvia.

From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2026

Henry Kissinger, a contemporary politician, wrote: “Deterrence depends, above all, on psychological criteria. For purposes of deterrence, a bluff taken seriously is more useful than a serious threat interpreted as a bluff.”

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan