Editing Deterrence theory (section)

==== Détente ====
With the [[Vietnam War#U.S. exit and final campaigns, 1973–1975|US drawdown]] from Vietnam, the normalization of US relations with China, and the [[Sino-Soviet Split]], the policy of containment was abandoned and a new policy of [[détente]] was established, with peaceful co-existence was sought between the United States and the Soviet Union. Although all of those factors contributed to this shift, the most important factor was probably the rough parity achieved in stockpiling nuclear weapons with the clear capability of [[mutual assured destruction]] (MAD). Therefore, the period of détente was characterized by a general reduction in the tension between the Soviet Union and the United States and a thawing of the Cold War, which lasted from the late 1960s until the start of the 1980s. The doctrine of mutual nuclear deterrence then characterized relations between the United States and the Soviet Union and relations with Russia until the onset of the [[Cold War II#Russo-Western tensions|New Cold War]] in the early 2010s. Since then, relations have been less clear.