I grew up during the Cold War. There were air raid sirens mounted on tall posts around the town, something I realised as a schoolkid although most of my friends were unaware of it. As a child I was hugely interested in aeroplanes and I remember those recognition manuals with grainy black and white photographs of those curiously gothic Russian military jets of the 60's and 70's. Of course I never saw them flying. I never saw them at all. That's no coincidence.

Some years ago I was hiking down in Savernake Forest. A tight formation of jets flew overhead. This was the year when Russian Mig-29's were being allowed into British airspace for the first time, for a Fairford airshow. With a close escort of RAF Tornado's, the Mig-29 was being shown around South West England.

The realisation that a Russian aircraft was flying past me is difficult to describe. Sure, this was the era of Glasnost and the Fall of the Berlin Wall, but all my life the Russians had been a tacit threat to the life I led.

Did I really understand that threat? The idea of a Russian invasion across Germany was something illustrated time and again, and spy thrillers perpetuated the concept of this struggle behind the scenes. I certainly knew about nuclear weapons, I had read about Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and although I was dimly aware that come the failure of diplomacy, the fabled 'Four Minute Warning' might become real I don't think I really understood that, potentially at least, there was a nuclear warhead aimed at me. I remember a television news item about missile tests by Pakistan that threatened to start another conflict with India. One man said that nuclear weapons can't be as destructive as they claim. It won't be so bad, he said. Ignorance really is bliss.

Today of course the Cold War is over. Apart from disagreements arising over matters of security and foreign policies, the world I knew as a child has become safer. Or has it? The rise of Islamic fundamentalism and its indiscriminate partner, terrorism, has filled the gap rather neatly.

The spectre of nuclear proliferation has risen again with President Ahmadenijad of Iran pursuing a contentious course. As a man who declared the Jewish Holocaust a lie, announced the end of Capitalism, and the end of the Age of Empire Building, he doesn't entirely sound convincing as a benign politician. Given the recent public outcry against him in his own country, he comes across as just another petty dictator. Given his apparent quest for nuclear armament can only be justified by the wish to threaten others or even use the things destructively, it seems he's trying to build an empire of his own. Like many dictators do, he hides behind religion and justifies his stance by labelling certain cultures as 'evil'.

Significantly both Russia and China have urged Iran to comply with western demands for inspection and control of nuclear facilirties. History tells us that dictators will gamble and push their luck to the end. So will President Ahmadenijad. His rambling speech at the UN was extraordinary. Not because it was any good, but because I can't think of anyone who could waffle for that length of time without drawing breath. What exactly did he say?

Invasion of the Week

British homes are invaded every Autumn by sneaky spiders. We've been warned they intend to invade this year in ever greater numbers, since the benign weather has allowed them to recruit new members in droves.

There's a military axiom that says if you want to mount an invasion with a secure chance of success, you need forces at least three times as strong as the defenders. That would make my war against the spider look like a horror film. Remember that scene in Lord of the Rings where Sam defends his unconcious master against Shelob, the giant spider in the mountains of Mordor? Luckily I won't be facing spiders that big. Or at least I hope not. It's been a while since I looked under the sink....

You have been warned!