A defense minister has stated that the MoD is currently looking into the potential threats associated with Chinese cars, while staff have been advised to refrain from talking about secret matters in all vehicles.
Safety Guidance for Defence Staff
In a recently aired interview on LBC, a defence minister commented on claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to discuss classified material while riding in China-made vehicles.
He explained that the ministry is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, however stressed that security is a concern in all modern vehicles.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones account for a very small number.
However whether you’re driving a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our people is not to plug Ministry of Defence technology into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a secret classification in any vehicle, due to the increasing risks of eavesdropping that are present in every single automobile, to only have those secret conversations in protected areas. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for everyone concerned about safety.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to cease using all cars from China, Pollard replied: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Defence Background
The revelation comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have warned the United Kingdom to the presence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off public transport and bring disruption to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship has been directing lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
This broader defence environment highlights the importance of robust measures and caution in all aspects of official operations, including vehicle usage to discussions habits.
