A defense minister has stated that the MoD is actively examining the potential security risks associated with Chinese vehicles, and staff have been advised to refrain from discussing secret matters in all vehicles.
Safety Guidance for MoD Staff
In a recent interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to talk about classified material while riding in Chinese cars.
He said that the ministry is “examining” cars from China within its fleets, however noted that safety is a issue in every modern cars.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
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 conversations at a secret level in any vehicle, because of the increasing threats of surveillance that are present in every single automobile, to restrict those confidential conversations in secure locations. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for anyone concerned about safety.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard responded: That is precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Defence Context
This revelation comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable public transport and bring chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia intelligence vessel has been directing laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
This wider security situation highlights the importance of robust protocols and vigilance in all areas of official operations, including transport usage to communication habits.
