NICOLA Sturgeon has discussed the “constitutional future of the UK” with the US Government on her visit to America after rejecting claims she was on an “indy tour”.

The First Minister said she talked about the issue in a meeting yesterday with the US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman in Washington DC.

The Scottish Tories said that, as the constitution was reserved to Westminster, the First Minister appeared to be doing "little more than grandstanding".

In a tweet, Ms Sturgeon said she and Ms Sherman “discussed the situation in Ukraine and resulting refugee crisis, the Northern Ireland protocol and the constitutional future of the UK”.

However Ms Sherman’s office made no mention of the issue in its official statement

Spokesperson Ned Price said the women “discussed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s brutal war of aggression against Ukraine and the humanitarian and refugee crisis it has spread across Europe”.  

He said Deputy Secretary Sherman had “also thanked Sturgeon for Scotland’s support of COP-26 and the ambitious, historic results the international community achieved in Glasgow to address the global climate crisis”.

On Monday, Ms Sturgeon defended the trip, her first to the US in three years, after the Scottish Tories said it was a wasteful exercise in promoting independence.

The First Minister said the two-day trip was simply promoting Scotland as a country.

She wrote in the Times: “The SNP’s opponents try to delegitimise the Scottish government’s international engagement. 

“But the reality is that Scottish ministers have been making international visits like this since the start of the devolution era, long before my party took office. 

 “Promoting our country overseas should, quite simply, be seen as part of the job for whoever the government of the day happens to be.”

Ms Sturgeon also met with the leading Democrat Nancy Pelosi, the speaker of the House of Representatives in the US Congress yesterday, presenting her with a book of poems and songs by Robert Burns.

Mrs Pelosi, who met Ms Sturgeon at COP26 in November, thanked her for her “leadership in protecting the planet” and reducing dependence on Russian oil.

Mrs Pelosi said Ms Surgeon had been a “real model to women everywhere in terms of women in leadership, again with great excellence”.

In return, Ms Sturgeon said she had “the utmost respect and admiration” for Ms Pelosi, and praised the “constructive leadership” of the Biden administration at COP26.

She said Scotland and the United States were long-standing and valued allies. 

After the meeting, the Scottish Government USA twitter account said the pair had also discussed "Scotland's future".

Ms Sturgeon broke with convention on Monday when she intruded on domestic US politics urged Americans not to re-elect Donald Trump as their president if he runs again for office.

In a Q&A at the Brookings Institution in Washington DC, Ms Sturgeon was asked which policies the United States could adopt to better assist European energy security.

She replied: “Don’t re-elect Trump at any point.”

Scottish Tory MSP Donald Cameron said: “The Scottish public want the First Minister to focus on the issues that matter to them – restoring our NHS, fixing our education system and pandemic recovery.

“But Nicola Sturgeon would rather jet off to the US to push her independence obsession in the White House.

“Scottish taxpayers are sick and tired of watching their hard-earned cash being spent on PR, photo-ops and promoting an independence referendum that poll after poll has shown that the majority don’t want.

“As foreign policy and the constitution are reserved matters anyway, the trip is little more than grandstanding by the First Minister.

“Instead of trying to convert US officials to the selfish cause of the SNP, Nicola Sturgeon should be focused on tackling her government’s woeful performance here in Scotland.”

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said: "Successive First Ministers have represented Scotland abroad but the previous ones were focused on boosting Scottish business and forging important diplomatic relationships.

"Using meetings with US officials to bang on about Scottish independence looks hopelessly out of touch at a time when most Scots are more concerned with the state of the economy and the cost-of-living crisis.

"Scotland needs an ambitious economic investment programme to help businesses flourish and protect families from the cost-of-living crisis. It's not going to get it when the First Minister's eyes are off the ball."