The BBC Scotland news website has an article today with the above headline. Acting Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Volker is quoted as saying that the agreement that led to the Lockerbie trial provided that, if convicted, the accused should serve their sentences in Scotland. The United States expected this agreement to be adhered to, notwithstanding any prisoner transfer agreement that may have been entered into by the UK Government and Libya. The full article can be read here.
And here is the text of a press release issued today by the Scottish National Party (the party which forms the Scottish -- as distinct from the UK -- Government):
'The US state department has said it is standing by an international agreement requiring the Lockerbie bomber to serve his sentence in Scotland.
'Acting Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Volker told BBC Scotland he expected the original deal to be "followed through". The UK Government and Libya recently struck an agreement over prisoner transfers.
'It emerged in June 2007 that the UK Government had signed a memorandum of understanding with Libya covering prisoner exchanges.
'First Minister Alex Salmond claimed at the time that the deal could allow Abdelbasset Al-Megrahi to serve the remainder of his sentence in Libya and he protested about a lack of consultation.
'Reacting to news that the US wants the Lockerbie bomber to stay in Scotland, Mr Salmond said:
"Anybody connected and convicted of the Lockerbie bombing should serve their sentences under Scottish jurisdiction. It is certainly not right for anyone regardless of their motivation to attempt to compromise or interfere or undermine the independent processes of the Scottish judicial system and I won't allow that to happen.
"We will defend the integrity of the Scottish judicial system, and uphold the international agreements that had been previously made."
'Megrahi is serving life for killing 270 people in the 1988 bombing. He was convicted in 2001 of blowing up Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie.'
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