Two promising developments today...
First up Presidents Barack Obama and Dmitry Medvedev signalled their intention to reduce the number of US and Russian nuclear warheads to 1,500-1,675.
Okay, each side still have enough bombs to destroy the Earth several times over. Plus the agreement only deals with "deployed strategic" weapons, leaving out the thousands of nuclear weapons deemed "non-strategic" or "non-deployed". But coming after years of standoff the fact the two countries are back at the negotiating table is undoubtedly GOOD NEWS.
Plus coming as they do in the wake of Obama and Medvedev's pledges to work for "achieving a nuclear-free world" on 1 April this year, there's real hope that these cuts will be the start rather than the end of the story.
Next up may be a first step towards Britain stepping down the non-nuclear path? Well, I shouldn't get too excited but the government today finally caved in to calls for a review of Britain's armed forces - announcing "a full review of Britain's Armed Forces early in the next parliament" that would feed into a strategic defence review after the general election.
What's on and off the menu isn't totally clear at this point - but in the light of the credit crunch squeezing budgets tight and pressure growing daily for a review of the decision to replace Trident it hard to imagine the UK's nuclear weapons won't be back on the table.
Even Des Browne - who as defence secretary in 2007 pushed through Trident replacement - seems to be changing his tune. He recently told the Observer that "while it was the right choice at the time to upgrade the system, possible alternatives were now emerging".
What with ex-head of the Desert Rats Sir Patrick Cordingley unanimously winning over the tough as old boots panel of Newsnight's 'politics pen' last week with his bid to save public cash by scrapping Trident, things seem set to hot up in the coming months.
