Nicola Sturgeon is “appalled” her predecessor Alex Salmond is still involved with the Russia Today channel – as she added her voice to calls for a UK broadcast ban.
The first minister spoke out as Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered troops into parts of Luhansk and Donetsk, two Ukrainian regions held by Russian-backed separatists.
Ukraine declared a state of emergency and urged all its citizens living in Russia to leave the country immediately.
I’m appalled at Alex Salmond’s continued involvement with RT.
– Nicola Sturgeon
Since the invasion, the UK has imposed a number of sanctions against Russia in response, including five banks having their assets frozen and three Russian billionaires being hit with UK travel bans.
However, Ms Sturgeon, along with Labour leader Sir Kier Starmer and Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries, wants to add a ban on RT to the list.
Sturgeon ‘appalled’ at Salmond’s RT show
Ms Sturgeon said: “It’s a matter for Ofcom, but I do think there is now a very serious question about whether RT should continue to have a licence to broadcast here in Scotland and I would certainly encourage Ofcom to look at that very, very seriously and closely indeed.
“I’m appalled at Alex Salmond’s continued involvement with RT, I don’t think it’s any secret now that I don’t think he should ever have had a television show on RT, but it is even more unthinkable now that that should continue.”
Ms Sturgeon told MSPs in Holyrood they should not consider appearing on RT themselves.
Her comments were echoed by Scottish Green MSP Ross Greer who said: “Alex Salmond’s continued involvement with Putin’s RT propaganda department is utterly disgraceful.
“He’d struggle to disgrace his own reputation more than is already the case, but as a former first minister this is causing real reputational damage to Scotland too.”
UK Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries wrote to regulator Ofcom asking them to review RT’s operation in the UK, saying the channel is “demonstrably part of Russia’s global disinformation campaign”.
SNP call for Russian money to be returned
Prime Minister’s Questions at Westminster was also dominated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The SNP’s Westminster leader, Ian Blackford, accused the Tories presided over a “sewer of dirty Russian money”.
He also called on the party to return £2.3 million he says was “raised from Russian oligarchs”.
Speaking in the House of Commons, he said: “The truth is that Russian oligarchs who give the right people in power a golden handshake have been welcomed into London for years.
“Their activities weren’t stopped, they were encouraged.
“Plenty of these golden handshakes just so happened to find their way into the coffers of the Conservative Party – £2.3m in fact, since the prime minister took office.”
Prime Minister Boris Johnson insisted the party does not take any money from Russian oligarchs, and only raises money from people who are registered to vote on the UK register of interests.
He said Mr Blackford’s “indignation” is “a bit much coming from somebody whose very own Alex Salmond is a leading presenter on Russia Today, which the leader of the opposition has just called on this country to ban”.
The prime minister, responding to a question from Highlands Lib Dem MP Jamie Stone, said it was a “disgrace” Mr Salmond’s television show still broadcasts on the state-backed RT channel.
Mr Salmond was approached for comment.