First Minister's press conference remarks following visit to Washington D.C.

Please find below a copy of the First Minister's opening remarks at the press conference following his recent visit to Washington D.C.

"Good afternoon everyone, thank you very much for coming along this afternoon.

I will say a few words first of all about my visit this week to the United States and then I'll take some questions.

Given the time difference between here and Washington D.C., it was difficult last night to share information about my visit so I thought it essential to be available to answer questions as soon as possible after my return.

It is now less than a week to go before the President of the United States will arrive in the United Kingdom for the State Visit.

That means we are, right now, in the critical days when decisions will be made and deals finalised in relation to the UK-US trade deal.

And those decisions will affect jobs, growth and prosperity here in Scotland and across the United Kingdom.

The negotiations are, of course, being conducted by the United Kingdom Government. But Scotland has significant interests, not least in the Whisky industry.

It became clear when President Trump visited Scotland in July that, amongst the many issues being considered in the trade deal, the tariff on Whisky was not on his radar.

That changed during the course of that visit.

Thanks to the conversations, I got the issue on the agenda and made it one of the two to three key sectors that were the focus of ongoing negotiations.

While it was encouraging to get it onto the agenda, we certainly did not get a deal over the line.

Since then, there has been work behind the scenes, undertaken by both the Scottish Government and the United Kingdom Government.

And with a few days just to go before the State Visit, my sense of where things stood was that there was a chance – but only a chance – that a better deal on Whisky was possible.

I therefore decided on Saturday to travel to Washington D.C. myself to try to make more progress.

The invitation that we then received from President Trump to meet him personally meant that we had an opportunity to make the case to the person on the American side who could, in the end, make the decision and do the deal.

I did not go to negotiate. That is for the United Kingdom Government to do. And we certainly were not going armed with just special pleading and sentiment.

No, we went to make the case to America that there was a deal possible that was better for Scotland and, crucially, better for the United States too. A win-win.

We spent 50 minutes yesterday in the Oval Office with the President and with Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

It was a good meeting; a very serious and a very substantial conversation.

We set out our case, set out the chance we believe exists for a better deal that benefits America and Scotland.

And President Trump listened carefully to Scotland's case.

But, I want to be very clear, we did not conclude a deal. That work rests with the United Kingdom Government.

I have worked hard to create a platform for the UK Government to negotiate and deliver on Scotch Whisky.

A better deal for Whisky was not previously on the agenda – and it now very much is.

But the ball is firmly in the UK Government's court.

They must press on with the detailed negotiations and try to get a deal over the line.

That said, I have to be realistic about our chances of getting this deal.

US policy is pro-tariffs. The President believes in tariffs.

So, nothing here is going to be easy. It never was.

But I think – and I hope – there is now a real chance of a better deal.

We've done the best we can to put this possibility in front of US decision makers - including the ultimate US decision maker.

I think we have made progress for Scotland this week in the trip to the United States.

My visit to Washington also included an excellent and informative meeting with the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, the Kentucky Distillers' Association, alongside the Scotch Whisky Association. This underlined to me the common cause that the two industries face and how we can hopefully secure a win-win outcome.

I also met with key members of Congress on Capitol Hill to help promote the case for a better tariff deal for Whisky.

And, given the opportunity to speak with the President, I thought it was important to raise the ongoing conflict in Gaza, the attack yesterday in Qatar, and the progress for peace in the Middle East – an issue which is of such huge concern to the people that I serve in Scotland.

In all my engagements yesterday, with everyone I met, I was given a warm welcome - and it is clear that Scotland is close to the hearts of many of America's top lawmakers and business people. In my view, that is something that we should not only cherish, but we should also nurture.

Of course, that affection for Scotland extends to the very top of the United States Government – something President Trump made clear to me when I met him during the summer.

He told me at that stage that if he could be of help to Scotland I should let him know.

Well, I am glad that this week I took the opportunity to follow up on the President's offer.

I will now very happily take some questions from you all."