Just before Christmas the freshly ennobled foreign secretary wrote to his elected colleagues in the Scottish Government complaining about meetings that Scotland’s first minister had held at COP28 in Dubai without his foreign office minder. The letter that threatened to withdraw cooperation from the Scottish Government for ‘breach of protocol’ also suggested that the UK should ‘speak with one voice to the international community’.
This spat would have surprised the many hundreds, if not thousands, of delegates at COP28 representing sub-state actors, in other words, governments below the internationally recognised state levels. Across the world, foreign policy and international affairs is not purely the preserve of the central government. Brussels alone plays host to the offices of 300 regional / sub-state entities.
In many other countries, it is perfectly normal for such actors to play an important role in international affairs in places such as Flanders that can take Belgium’s place in the European Council. Canada’s provinces were part of Canada’s negotiating team in its EU trade negotiations and Greenland is a co-signatory to a Defence Treaty with the United States alongside Denmark.
International affairs count
These are all states that are comfortable with the idea that foreign affairs have a direct impact on domestic issues and where sub-state actors invest heavily in their international work. Having a Scottish role in international affairs is not unusual, however, the current UK Government’s attempts to minimise that role are.
International affairs are at the heart of voters’ concerns given the impact they have on issues such as the cost-of-living crisis, driven by global conflicts, the UK’s decision to leave the EU, and the Rwanda scheme, hampered by the UK’s long-standing international human rights commitments. To paraphrase, even if the devolved administrations were not interested in global affairs, international events are certainly impacting upon devolved areas of competence.
That is why successive administrations from across the political spectrum have sought to influence affairs outside of Scotland. In 1992 the Conservative government opened Scotland’s first office in Brussels to play a role in influencing European policy making. The Labour/Liberal Democrat Holyrood administration went further, opening offices in Washington DC and Beijing as well as establishing a Scottish International Development Fund. Other pro-Union politicians, committed to devolution, have expressed support for continued international engagement with former Foreign Office minister, Lord Howell writing in the Parliament magazine:
“Far-sighted unionists in London should be working out how to offer Scotland not just the appearance but the genuine substance of this form of partnership and properly integrated involvement in the UK’s overall international relations.”
Scotland
A globally recognised brand
Given Scotland’s significant soft power clout and globally recognised brand, the benefits to the economy and international advocacy efforts are incredibly important assets to the UK. This does require a recognition that the UK is a multi-national and pluralist state, a view that has been on retreat in the UK since it left the EU with an increasingly isolationist view in Westminster. The embrace of a hard Brexit and greater centralisation with the Internal Market Act has sharpened that.
This has provided an opportunity for Independence supporters who can claim that regaining independence and re-joining the EU would be a return to international and European norms. The alternative is the failed exceptionalism of a Brexit experiment that is making the UK poorer, depriving its citizens of rights and opportunities they previously enjoyed. Little wonder Brexit is so unpopular.
Regardless of Scotland’s constitutional future, it is important to consider where Scotland should focus its international efforts. Climate change is devolved to the Scottish parliament and is an area where Scotland has gained some international recognition such as the pioneering work on a loss and damage fund. Scotland’s leadership on renewables has also been good for jobs and investment and a positive impact on the UK’s international commitments on greenhouse gas emissions.
An international actor
Regarding jobs and investment, we also know that Scotland’s brand sells. UK and Scottish ministers use it to promote our world-class food and drink industry, flag a globally respected higher education sector and a renowned tourism experience. All good jobs, the Treasury’s coffers and the UK and Scotland’s soft power clout.
There could also be a greater focus on Scotland’s role as an international actor, such as providing a safe space for conflict resolution. Several Scottish-based organisations are using Scotland’s brand in their work. Beyond Borders Scotland‘s ground-breaking work with the Scottish Government and the United Nations has brought women peacebuilders together. Their founder Mark Muller Stuart told the Royal Society of Arts:
“My experiences as an international human rights advocate and mediator convince me Scotland has a real and unique contribution to make in the field of conflict resolution, and in the promotion of mutual understanding between nations and cultures.”
There is a question for those who believe in the Union as to whether that plurality and multi-national approach to foreign policy is still relevant.
Similarly, for those who believe in independence, there must be recognition that the world has changed since 2014. That may provide political opportunities, but it also throws up potential challenges. On the question of Brexit, most Scots want to see a return to the EU as soon as possible. That timing will rely on how much preparation has been done ahead of an independence referendum and our neighbours will need to be assured that an independent Scotland will help re-build the EU’s relationship with what remains of the UK, in the same way as Ireland has sought to overcome its difficult history and act as a bridge between the UK and rest of Europe during a painful, and ongoing Brexit process.
Scottish security
Secondly, the security landscape has changed in the aftermath of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Our neighbours will want to know that Scotland is fully committed to their security and willing to be an active participant in Europe’s moves towards greater strategic autonomy in areas such as energy and food and drink security as well as harder security, both as a member of NATO and the EU.
We must also decide what our priorities are and what kind of actor Scotland will be on the world stage. Scotland is about a tenth of the size of the UK and our strength will be entwined with a commitment to multilateralism. There is still a lot we can learn from an approach that will have to be closer to that pursued in foreign ministries in Helsinki, Dublin and Copenhagen for instance rather than in King Charles Street or the Quai d’Orsay.
This is not impossible and for the nations of these islands to build a successful future partnership it will be important to recognise each other’s international roles. There is precedent, if we look to our Nordic neighbours we will see a group of countries with a variety of relationships with each other, Europe and the wider international community that could act as a model for the nations and other entities within these islands.
