UK steps closer to renewing nuclear firepower

(Reuters) - Britain moved a step closer to renewing its Trident nuclear weapons system on Tuesday, awarding 350 million pounds worth of contracts to design a new generation of submarines that critics say are the result of outdated, Cold War thinking.

The Successor class submarine would be used to replace the four Vanguard class vessels currently carrying Britain's Trident nuclear missiles, but a debate has raged about whether like-for-like renewal at an estimated cost of up to 20 billion pounds ($31.5 billion) is necessary.
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Reports have emerged that the Lib Dems want a more radical downgrading of Trident, in particular a departure from the so-called "Moscow doctrine" - the ability for Britain to act alone against Russia or another nation of similar power if need be.

"It is unthinkable today that Britain would contemplate the destruction of the heavily populated capital of Russia - or of any other city," wrote Lib Dem grandee and former party leader Menzies Campbell in the Financial Times newspaper last week.
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While some dismiss the Moscow doctrine as a Cold War throwback, others point to Britain's fraught ties with Russia in recent years, Moscow's increasingly tense relations with NATO and President Vladimir Putin's plans to beef up his military.