This government has constantly reiterated its desire for world wide nuclear disarmament and is well-placed to take a lead towards this end.

  There is no room for complacency or neglect of the issues by political leaders. The progress and effectiveness of non-proliferation regimes since the last major NPT review Conference in 1995 has not been good. India and Pakistan, not signatories to the NPT, have both tested nuclear devices; there are strong suspicions that Iraq, Iran and North Korea aspire to become nuclear capable. US adherence to treaties is crumbling, China has modernised her nuclear arsenals and Russia has tested new TOPOL missiles. The Guardian (14 January 2000) reports that Acting President Vladinier Putin has decreed a new national security strategy. Its more confrontational attitude to the West, saying that nuclear weapons can now be used in response to conventional attack is sparked partly by NATO's eastward expansion and the perceived US aim to use its military right to dominate the world.

  US moves towards a Ballistic Missile Defence System (BMD), money for which is likely to be confirmed in June, contravene the ABM Treaty and threaten a new arms race. The UK is encouraging the US by allowing it to expand its base at Menwith Hill in Yorkshire to provide essential communications for the BMD.

  The best way to encourage non-signatory states is by complying with both the spirit and the letter of treaties to which the UK is signatory. The choice is not between proliferation and non-proliferation but between proliferation and disarmament.