A defence minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is actively examining the possible security risks associated with Chinese-made vehicles, and personnel have been instructed to avoid talking about classified information in any cars.
Safety Guidance for Defence Personnel
During a recently aired appearance on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on claims that MoD staff have been instructed not to talk about secret material while riding in China-made cars.
He stated that the MoD is “looking into” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however noted that security is a concern in every modern vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles account for a tiny fraction.
But whether you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence technology into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a classified level in any car, because of the growing risks of surveillance that are present in all vehicle, to restrict those confidential conversations in secure locations. This is a wise and reasonable thing for anyone worried about safety.
After it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using every Chinese vehicles, the minister responded: That is exactly what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Defence Background
This revelation follows claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese-made electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable public transport and bring disruption to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship was reportedly directing laser beams at RAF aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.
This broader security situation highlights the importance of strong measures and caution in all aspects of government operations, from transport use to communication practices.
