NICOLA Sturgeon has rejected claims that Vladimir Putin’s threats of nuclear war, and her party’s opposition to Trident has weakened the case for Scottish independence.

The First Minister accepted that the war in Ukraine had changed “what we previously took for granted in terms of the world order and defence and security” but insisted the best way for Scotland to “influence those debates about the world we live in” was by leaving the UK.

Her comments came after a column in the New Statesman by influential journalist Andrew Marr warned that “Trident could be the issue that makes winning an independence referendum next year impossible.”

Mr Marr argued that removing the nuclear deterrent from Scotland would, in effect, be removing the nuclear deterrent from the UK as there is no other suitable site other than Faslane.

The journalist suggested Boris Johnson would make “preventing the removal of Britain’s nuclear deterrent when Putin is using nuclear threats” as an argument to not agree to a second independence referendum.

Asked about the comments during a campaign stop at the Barrowfield Community Hub Cafe in Glasgow’s East End, the First Minister said: “I think we should all steer clear of trying to exploit what's happening in Ukraine either to make the case for or against independence.

“My entire leadership of the SNP and actually well beyond that is littered with examples of people taking whatever is the latest global or domestic development and confidently predicting that it meant the death knell for the SNP and the case for independence.

“And, you know, that has tended not to be the case."

Ms Sturgeon added: “What is happening in Ukraine is absolutely changing many if not all of what we previously took for granted in terms of the world order and defence and security and countries everywhere are having to think about what that means for the future.

“I think the best way in the future Scotland can influence those debates about the world we live in is by being an independent country.”

Scottish Conservative Shadow Constitution Secretary Donald Cameron MSP said the SNP were "dangerously ignorant" on defence. 

He said: “The fact that the SNP has doubled-down on their opposition to nuclear weapons since Russia’s appalling invasion of Ukraine shows just how reckless and out-of-touch they really are.

“Ukraine has hailed the UK as their greatest ally – and our nuclear deterrent is a vital part of that.

“The SNP is dangerously ignorant when it comes to foreign policy and defence. Their desire to break up the UK would destabilise Europe and leave Scotland and the rest of the UK vastly weakened, even before scrapping essential nuclear deterrents."