An defense minister has confirmed that the MoD is actively investigating the potential security risks associated with Chinese vehicles, and personnel have been advised to refrain from talking about secret matters in any cars.
Safety Guidance for MoD Staff
During a recently aired appearance on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to discuss classified information while travelling in China-made cars.
The minister stated that the ministry is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, however noted that safety is a concern in all modern cars.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our people is not to plug MoD technology into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a classified classification in any kind of car, due to the increasing threats of eavesdropping that are present in all automobile, to only have those confidential talks in protected areas. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for anyone worried about safety.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to stop using all cars from China, Pollard replied: That is exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Defence Background
The revelation follows reports from Scandinavian countries have warned the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could allow China to disable public transport and cause chaos to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship was reportedly shining lasers at RAF aircrew, labeled a “highly dangerous” act by government representatives.
This wider security environment highlights the significance of strong protocols and caution in every areas of government operations, from transport usage to discussions practices.
