Scrap Trident, says former NATO commander

"I think the UK is very close to saying we're the first permanent member of the Security Council to do away with nuclear weapons," General Jack Sheehan told BBC News today.  Sheehan, the former Supreme Allied Commander for NATO, commented on suggestions by other retired military figures that the UK rethink its decision to replace the Trident system, made up of submarines, missiles and nuclear warheads.  "I think it is entirely possible that the British government, for a lot of good reasons, could do it and it would lead the world...All of a sudden you call into question why the French have a system," he said.  "It creates an impetus for the U.S. and Russia to kind of move away from this position they're currently in, to start a dialogue to build on." With Ploughshares Fund support, a coalition of British organizations, including the British American Security Information Council (BASIC) and Acronym Institute for Disarmament Diplomacy has worked to build public and policymaker support for retiring the Trident system.