An defence minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently examining the potential security risks posed by Chinese-made vehicles, and staff have been advised to refrain from discussing secret information in any cars.
Safety Advice for Defence Personnel
During a recently aired interview on a radio station, a defence minister addressed claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to talk about classified material while travelling in China-made cars.
He explained that the MoD is “investigating” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however stressed that safety is a concern in all modern vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
But whether you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is not to plug MoD devices into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a secret level in any vehicle, because of the growing risks of surveillance that are present in all vehicle, to only have those confidential talks in secure locations. That’s a wise and sensible thing for everyone worried about security.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to cease using all Chinese vehicles, Pollard responded: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Security Context
The revelation follows claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable buses and bring chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly shining laser beams at RAF aircrew, labeled a “highly dangerous” act by government representatives.
This broader defence environment highlights the significance of robust protocols and caution in all aspects of government activities, including vehicle usage to discussions practices.
