An defense official has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is actively investigating the potential threats associated with Chinese-made cars, and personnel have been instructed to avoid talking about secret matters in all vehicles.
Security Guidance for Defence Personnel
In a recently aired interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to discuss secret information while travelling in China-made vehicles.
The minister said that the MoD is “investigating” cars from China within its fleets, however stressed that safety is a issue in all modern cars.
Our department has a collection of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles account for a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our people is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence devices into their car, to avoid having conversations at a secret classification in any kind of car, because of the increasing threats of surveillance that are present in every single automobile, to restrict those confidential talks in protected areas. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone worried about safety.
When it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to stop using all cars from China, the minister replied: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Wider Defence Context
This revelation comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have warned the UK to the presence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off public transport and bring chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian spy ship has been directing lasers at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
This wider security environment highlights the importance of strong protocols and caution in every aspects of government activities, including vehicle usage to discussions practices.
