A defence minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently examining the possible threats associated with Chinese-made cars, and personnel have been advised to refrain from talking about classified information in all vehicles.
Safety Advice for Defence Staff
In 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 vehicles.
He explained that the MoD is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but noted that safety is a concern in every modern vehicles.
Our department has a collection of thousands of vehicles 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 technology into their car, not to have conversations at a secret level in any vehicle, due to the growing risks of eavesdropping that exist in all automobile, to restrict those secret conversations in protected areas. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone concerned about security.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to cease using all cars from China, Pollard responded: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Broader Defence Context
The announcement follows reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the presence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable public transport and cause disruption to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly shining laser beams at RAF pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” act by government representatives.
This wider security situation underscores the significance of strong protocols and caution in every areas of government operations, from transport usage to discussions practices.
