Salmond also suggested Scots could be asked two questions in the referendum, including one on the country's fiscal autonomy.
Scotland has strong defence links with Britain and a rich military heritage, with all three of Britain's armed forces having a significant presence at 381 sites across the country.
"What we have said, spelt out in some detail, many many countries in the world share military facilities with friendly neighbours, and there is absolutely no reason why Scotland wouldn't be prepared to do that," he told BBC TV when asked about pooling defence policy with the government at Westminster.
But he said an independent Scotland would follow its own foreign policy and would not have taken part in the war in Iraq.
"That (Iraq) stresses why you've got to have the ability and determination in order to chart your own way in the world so you don't get entangled into illegal and disastrous international conflicts," he said.
The Ministry of Defence and armed forces employ 20,000 people in Scotland, and the MoD spends an average 600 million pounds a year in the country on 500 contracts, with the Scottish defence manufacturing sector producing ships and equipment.
The SNP's manifesto sets out its opposition to the Trident nuclear missile system and its replacement.
Opinion polls show only about a third of Scots back independence, and British Prime Minister David Cameron, leader of the centre-right Conservative party, has vowed to defend British unity.
(Writing by Avril Ormsby; Editing by Alison Williams)
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