MOSCOW, September 18 (RIA Novosti) - If Scotland votes in favor of independence, it will face a number of challenges, Mikhail Margelov, the head of the Foreign Affairs Committee of Russia's Federation Council said on Thursday.
An independent Scotland will have to decide "whether it will be a member of the European Union, NATO, how it will operate in the United Nations," Margelov said, adding that all these issues "are possible to solve."
The politician noted that talks of independence are ongoing in a number of European regions, such as Catalonia, Corsica and Alsace.
Speaking of the possible reasons behind the Scottish independence movement, Margelov said that "Scots do not wish to share the UK budget, they want to be able to build their own economy".
Polling stations for the referendum on Scottish independence opened in Scotland at 07:00 a.m. BST (06:00 GMT) and will remain open till 10:00 p.m. BST (21:00 GMT) on Thursday.
If the majority of people vote in favor of independence, Scotland will secede from the United Kingdom on March 24, 2016.
