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<\/p>\nEXCLUSIVE: Lib Dem MP Alister Carmichael said the “security of the United Kingdom” has to be “security for everybody in the United Kingdom”.<\/p>\n
04:30, 05 Mar 2026<\/p>\n
![\"Vladimir](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/0_Vladimir-Putin.jpg\")
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Vladimir Putin(Image: POOL\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n
One of Scotland\u2019s longest serving MPs has demanded greater defence spending to protect Orkney and Shetland from Putin\u2019s Russia<\/a>.<\/p>\n Alister Carmichael said he is concerned his constituency would be defenceless if attacked and urged the UK to take the threat \u201cseriously\u201d.<\/a><\/p>\n The Lib Dem veteran\u2019s call comes amid concerns of Russian spy ships in UK waters.<\/a><\/p>\n According to the Spectator magazine, military officers told MPs of their fears about areas like Orkney and Shetland not being able to defend themselves from Russian aggression.<\/p>\n In an interview with the Record, Carmichael, who has represented the Isles since 2001, also spoke of his concerns about the \u201cHigh North\u201d, which includes the Arctic.<\/p>\n He said the waters around his constituency are vital for energy security and rich in minerals, and could be targeted by Russia.<\/p>\n \u201cI think you would have to be naive not to have some concerns,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cMy interests first got piqued on this about three years ago with that [Russian] research vessel that was basically sailing up and down the line of pipelines in the North Sea.<\/p>\n \u201cWhy would you do that? It’s not something that you would do for any benign reason.\u201d<\/p>\n READ MORE: Anas Sarwar backs Labour over ‘irregularities’ claim in selection of Holyrood candidate<\/a>READ MORE: Husband of Scottish Labour MP Joani Reid arrested in China spying investigation<\/a><\/p>\n Carmichael said the UK depends on \u201ccables\u201d and \u201cpipe lines\u201d on the seabed, adding:<\/p>\n \u201cThere was an instance in the January of 25, where Russian ships deliberately cut the cables into the south end of Finland.<\/p>\n “So my reading of that is that this was by way of a warning shot to Finland.”<\/p>\n He said of the UK military fears that Orkney and Shetland could be defenceless:<\/p>\n \u201cThat’s my concern. I’m not sure how easily we are defended, but you have to have some sort of response that is available if you need it.\u201d<\/p>\n He said his constituency should \u201cabsolutely\u201d benefit from extra defence spending and said greater protection would help NATO:<\/p>\n \u201cIt’s not just helping Orkney and Shetland. It’s securing NATO\u2019s position in the northeast Atlantic and we are the obvious people to be doing it.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have got skin in the game because you have got a resource in Shetland and Orkney, the maritime industry, the offshore gas industry.\u201d<\/p>\n He added: \u201cI don’t think that there is any part of the United Kingdom that should be left undefended.\u201d<\/p>\n The MP said he is not suggesting an \u201coverstretched\u201d Russian military was poised to land in Lerwick, but his message to the MOD on the threat was stark:<\/p>\n \u201cTake it seriously. The security of the United Kingdom has to be security for everybody in the United Kingdom.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd be robust in the defences that you put in place, because at the moment those defences are not robust. And we will all suffer as a consequence of getting this one wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n An MOD spokesperson said: \u201cThe UK is stepping up to protect the Arctic and High North \u2013 doubling the number of Marines we have in Norway, deploying HMS Prince of Wales to the high north and scaling up joint exercises with NATO allies.<\/p>\n “As the Defence Secretary has said, Scotland is on the front-line defending Britain, with key strategic bases playing an increasingly vital role in protecting the North Atlantic from Putin’s aggression.<\/p>\n \u201cThe exceptional military personnel serving in Scotland and the 11,800 skilled people across the Scottish defence industry are a credit to this country. Their dedication keeps us secure at home and strong abroad.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"EXCLUSIVE: Lib Dem MP Alister Carmichael said the “security of the United Kingdom” has to be “security for…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":804895,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[7655],"tags":[24930,11653,332,24931,1263],"class_list":["post-804894","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-russia","tag-orkney","tag-premium","tag-russia","tag-shetland","tag-transport"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/116174731876516165","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/804894","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=804894"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/804894\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/804895"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=804894"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=804894"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=804894"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}