The current political situation in Europe between the NATO countries and the Russian Federation, under Vladimir Putin, is presently the subject of increasing media coverage with routine reports regarding tension between all parties involved. While the content of initial reporting was primarily political in nature, talk of military action has slowly but steadily increased. These are scenes, reminiscent of the Cold War and the global arms race, something the 50+ generation can well remember. However, the collapse of the Soviet Union and subsequent end of the Cold War in 1990/91 made any real possibility of full scale military conflict so remote that hardly anyone has considered it a real possibility for the past 25 years. A recent announcement however by the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, to modernise Russia’s nuclear arsenal due to the growing threat presented by NATO has brought the largely forgotten threat or nuclear war back into public consciousness.