This study, commissioned by U.S. Strategic Command and conducted by the National Defense University INSS Center for the Study of WMD, considered Department of Defense courses of action for managing escalation and deterring adversary nuclear employment within a potential future Indo-Pacific regional conflict scenario. The study considered several key variables within a potential major power crisis or conflict within this region, to include complex escalation dynamics, conventional-nuclear integration issues, the role of strategic and theater-range nuclear forces, and the challenge (and imperative) of strategic communications. The study’s April 2025 final report is USG-only; available by request from USG colleagues.