Scottish Politics, Middle East Money

Scotland is no longer the invisible country of Western Europe. Following its decision last month to release Abdel Baset al-Megrahi, the man convicted of carrying out the 1988 Lockerbie bombing, the semi-autonomous state has attracted global attention, albeit not all positive. It seems that was precisely the government's plan.

Kenny MacAskill, Scotland's justice minister, insisted that the "compassionate" act of releasing Megrahi was "based on the values, beliefs and common humanity that defines us as Scots." He has omitted to mention one fact: That the decision may have been a favor granted to wealthy Arab benefactors in the hopes that they will bankroll Edinburgh's push for full independence from the U.K.

This is now coming to light, after the government last week revealed that it had been lobbied in June by Khalid al-Attiyah, Qatar's minister for international cooperation, to free Megrahi. The revelations have prodded the Scottish parliament to launch an investigation into the release, with an emphasis on any foreign investment tie-ups. But it is no secret that, for several years, Scotland has been engaged in feverish efforts to secure billions in Middle Eastern funds for overdue infrastructure projects, so as to lessen dependence on the British Treasury.

The world is now aware that Scottish justice is sovereign, and that since 2007 the country's decentralized parliament and administration have been under the control of the Scottish Nationalist Party. Alex Salmond, the country's pugnacious and crafty first minister, is actively seeking to sever links with the rest of the U.K. This, despite the fact that his heavily urbanized and now largely post-industrial country spends far more than it raises in taxes, and depends on subsidies from London.

Carefully stage-managed conflicts with London have been designed to depict Mr. Salmond's Nationalists as the only force prepared to uphold Scottish interests against an overbearing England, with whom Scotland has been formally united since 1707. In a new twist, Mr. Salmond has gambled that taking on the supposed American Goliath will further cast his party as liberators standing up to bullying overlords. Mr. MacAskill, also of the Nationalist party, stood his ground over the convicted bomber's release, despite a phone call from U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and a letter from senior figures in the American Congress. FBI Director Robert Mueller has referred to the distress of the Lockerbie bombing's relatives in a letter he wrote to Mr. MacAskill in August, expressing his "outrage" at the decision which he said made "a mockery of the rule of law." The nonchalant response of the Salmond government suggested that it no longer feels the need to win over the U.S. in its quest for total Scottish independence.

Given Mr. Salmond's aims, it was probably always a question of when, not if, relations with the U.S. would hit the rocks. He is adamant that a separate Scotland will quit the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and hopes to use existing laws to stop British nuclear missiles from moving through Scotland's River Clyde. The Nationalists seem happy with Scotland being a small but active cog in a multipolar world, one in which the West must learn to give way to old adversaries and new powers. This stance has won Mr. Salmond open praise from Iran, which he has not disavowed.

He relies on one individual in particular to direct his government's anti-Washington and anti-London strategy, and simultaneously to raise Scotland's profile in the Middle East. This is Osama Saeed, an energetic 29-year-old tax expert drawn from Scotland's growing and hitherto moderate Muslim community. Mr. Saeed doesn't hide his belief in the restoration of the caliphate, and he has spoken up for Yusuf al-Qaradawi, the Egyptian cleric banned from both Britain and the U.S. In 2008, Mr. Saeed intervened to ensure that over £400,000 was found in the Scottish budget to establish a Scottish Islamic Foundation, which has given a platform to many high-profile Islamists.

Scotland's Muslims previously had clear secular leanings. Now the Nationalists are going to great pains to ensure that politicized forms of Islam make the running among them. It is part of a wider strategy to impose rigid identities on all Scots based on a stereotypical expression of Scottishness firmly wedded to political nationalism.

The Nationalists only have a one seat majority over their opponents. They narrowly won power in 2007 thanks in no small measure to their vocal opposition to intervention in Iraq, which won many voters previously attached to the far left. In 2004 Mr. Salmond openly called for Tony Blair's impeachment over Iraq, and for good measure lashed out at George W. Bush.

These Nationalists have failed to outline an ethical vision for governing a separate Scotland, despite Mr. MacAskill's emotion-laded rhetoric. Nor do they present viable economic policies. Many Scots are now fearful that the country's newfound visibility will plunge them into isolation from formerly close allies, exacerbating their economic problems. But the demoralized opposition in Edinburgh has so far neglected to lead. A document leaked to the press earlier this month showed that Mr. Salmond has even persuaded top Scottish civil-servants to support his policy of "conflict and confrontation" with London.

Mr. Salmond is a formidable politician who has come a long way in his quest to break apart the U.K. All signs point to his continuing to cater to radical Islam, and to goad the most liberal administration in Washington since that of Franklin Roosevelt, if it will bring him goal closer to that goal.