Scotland would become a high-priority target for Russia if a Third World War was to break out, according to defence experts. It has also been claimed in a new paper from the Royal United Services Institute that Scotland's independence could make it a "gift" for Vladimir Putin.
The paper states that the Russian president is reinstating Russia's Cold War "Bastion" defence policy, as reported in The Times – a strategy that targeted critical defence sites and land in Scotland to establish military control over the North Atlantic. The paper goes on to suggest that Scotland’s growing importance for Nato defence comes “at precisely the moment when the prospect of Scotland voting to leave the UK has never looked greater” and refers to the United Kingdom's break-up as “a wildcard for High North security”.
It is understood that some within Nato are opposed to Scotland gaining membership if the country lobbies for the expensive and disruptive removal of nuclear submarines. Experts already fear that Russia is attempting to track UK submarines as they leave the Faslane naval base in Clyde and they expect Putin will launch incursions into Scotland's newly independent maritime and airspace to test the strengths of its defences.
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