Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond today defended the decision to free the Lockerbie bomber as the right decision for the right reasons.
He spoke out after an unprecedented attack by FBI director Robert Mueller who said he was "outraged" at
the release of Abdelbaset Ali Al Megrahi.
In a highly critical letter to Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill, Mr Mueller said the decision, taken
on compassionate grounds, made a mockery of the law and gave comfort to terrorists.
Former Scottish First Minister Jack McConnell also criticised the decision, saying it was a "grave error of
judgment" which had damaged the reputation of Scotland.
But Mr Salmond told BBC Radio 4: "No one I think seriously believes we made any other decision except
for the right reasons.
"I think it was the right decision. I also absolutely know it was for the right reasons." Mr Salmond insisted
the decisions were made to the letter of Scots law.
He said there had been wide consultation with American families and politicians, including Secretary of
State Hillary Clinton.
Mr Salmond said: "I understand the huge and strongly held views of the American families but that's not all
the families who were affected by Lockerbie.
"As you're well aware, a number of the families, particularly in the UK, take a different view and think that
we made the right decision.
"I would never criticise anybody in terms of who comes forward from the affected families.
"I don't think Rob Mueller's correct in believing that all the families have the same opinion — clearly that's
not the case." Mr Salmond said his Justice Secretary had not invited the two applications, one for prisoner
transfer and one for compassionate release.
He continued: "An important point is that Robert Mueller, who is I'm sure extraordinarily distinguished in all
sorts of things, but that aspect — particularly of compassionate release — is not part of the United States
judicial system." He insisted the relationship between the US and Scotland is "strong and enduring".
Mr Salmond was responding as pressure continued to pile on the British and Scottish governments following Megrahi's release on Thursday.
Megrahi, who is terminally ill with prostate cancer, was freed by Mr MacAskill after he served eight years
of a life sentence. He returned home to Libya to jubilant scenes that included people waving Scottish flags.
Mr Mueller, a former US prosecutor, played a key role in the investigation into the 1988 bombing of Pan
Am Flight 103 which killed 270 people.
In his letter to Mr MacAskill he said: "Your action in releasing Megrahi is as inexplicable as it is detrimental
to the cause of justice.
"Indeed your action makes a mockery of the rule of law. Your action gives comfort to terrorists around the
world." He added that he normally did not comment on the actions of other prosecutors, but he had been
forced to abandon the rule because "I am outraged at your decision, blithely defended on the grounds of
'compassion'".
The Scottish Government said Mr MacAskill would respond to Mr Mueller's letter "in due course".
Mr MacAskill will face questions from his peers when the Scottish Parliament is recalled a week early
tomorrow.
Labour's Mr McConnell, who preceded Mr Salmond, said it was up to the Scottish Parliament to take
action to repair some of the "damage" caused by Megrahi's release.
He said: "I think it's absolutely vital that the Scottish Parliament now takes action to limit that damage and to
give a clear indication to the rest of the world that when the Scottish Government made this decision they
were not acting with the support of the people of Scotland." A spokesman for Mr MacAskill said he would
answer "any and all" questions put to him by MSPs at Holyrood in line with the proper parliamentary
process.
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has faced calls to explain a meeting he had with Libyan leader Colonel
Muammar Gaddafi when he apparently discussed the case.
Mr Brown has yet to make a comment on the case, which senior ministers stressed was a devolved matter
for the SNP administration in Edinburgh.
Opposition parties have spoken out after Col Gaddafi's son Saif claimed that the decision to free Megrahi
was tied to a trade agreement.
Libyan television has shown pictures of Col Gaddafi meeting Megrahi and praising "my friend" Gordon
Brown and the British government for their part in securing his freedom.
The Foreign Office said in a statement: "No deal has been made between the UK Government and Libya in
relation to Megrahi and any commercial interests in the country." A British government minister expressed
concern that the row over Megrahi's release should not damage wider UK relations with the US.
Jim Knight, the Employment Minister, told Sky News's Sunday Live programme: "It is notable that the letter
from the FBI rightly focused entirely on this being a Scottish decision.
"I hope that there is no fall-out from this for Scotland and I hope that there is no fall-out from this for the
UK in terms or our relationship with the US which is a key relationship for us.
"But it was a decision made by Kenny MacAskill." Downing Street yesterday released a letter which Mr
Brown sent to Col Gaddafi ahead of Megrahi's release which revealed they had discussed the possibility he
could be freed in the margins of the G8 summit in Italy last month.
"When we met I stressed that, should the Scottish Executive decide that Megrahi can return to Libya, this
should be a purely private, family occasion," Mr Brown wrote.
"A high-profile return would cause further unnecessary pain for the families of the Lockerbie victims. It
would also undermine Libya's growing international reputation.
"There are significant shared interests at stake in our relationship and I am committed to working with you
to achieve them." Business Secretary Lord Mandelson has strongly denied claim's by Col Gaddafi's son,
Saif, that Megrahi's release was linked to a trade deal relating to Libya's oil and gas reserves.
He dismissed suggestions of a deal as "offensive".
PA