An defence official has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is actively looking into the potential security risks associated with Chinese-made cars, while personnel have been told to refrain from discussing secret matters in any vehicles.
Safety Guidance for Defence Staff
During a recent interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been instructed not to talk about classified material while travelling in Chinese cars.
He explained that the MoD is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, but noted that security is a issue in all contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a collection of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles account for a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their car, not to have conversations at a classified level in any car, due to the increasing risks of surveillance that exist in all vehicle, to restrict those confidential talks in secure locations. That’s a wise and sensible thing for anyone concerned about security.
After it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to stop using every cars from China, the minister replied: That is precisely what we are looking into at the present time.”
Broader Defence Context
The announcement comes as reports from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable buses and bring chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian spy ship has been directing lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
This broader security environment underscores the significance of robust protocols and vigilance in every aspects of government operations, including vehicle use to communication habits.
