Scotland should be allowed to represent itself in the European Union and other international bodies to reflect the growing influence of small nations on the world stage, according to the SNP.
Latvia with a population of two million people assumed the presidency of the Council of the European Union yesterday.
It will hand over to tiny Luxembourg, which has a population smaller than Glasgow, in June.
The SNP's bid for Scottish independence was rejected in a referendum in September and polls show "devo max" - which is widely interpreted as devolution of all powers except foreign affairs and defence - remains the most popular constitutional option.
But SNP MEP Alyn Smith said this year's EU presidencies demonstrate small nations can "punch well above their weight on the international stage", and insists Scotland's five million citizens should have their own voice.
"I warmly welcome the upcoming presidencies of both Latvia and Luxembourg and look forward to working with them in 2015 on our shared priorities," he said.
"That two countries with populations which are significantly smaller than Scotland's will be setting Europe's agenda for the next 12 months only confirms the potential of the EU to allow small nations to punch well above their weight on the international stage.
"But while both Latvia and Luxembourg will be able to lead on issues of direct importance to them and will be able to represent their own national interests at the top table - Scotland finds itself represented by a UK Government more focused on playing to Ukip's agenda than in playing a constructive role in Europe.
"That is exactly why the SNP has always been clear that the extensive new powers which Scotland was promised must give Scotland a stronger and clearer voice on the international stage - to allow us to stand up for our own interests at the top table as other small nations do, rather than leaving it up to a distant Westminster establishment.
"An SNP vote at the general election will put real pressure on Westminster to deliver these powers - and to give Scotland the voice at the top table that we need to stand up for the national interest."
A Scottish Labour spokesman said: "As part of the UK, Scotland already has a seat at the top table in Europe.
"In 2014 the SNP's attempts to break up the UK put Scotland's place in the EU at risk.
"In 2015 every vote for the SNP makes it more likely David Cameron will stay in Downing Street.
"Only Labour is big enough and strong enough to get rid of the Tories across the UK."
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article