A defence minister has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is currently looking into the possible threats posed by Chinese vehicles, and personnel have been advised to avoid talking about classified information in any vehicles.
Safety Advice for Defence Personnel
During a recent interview on LBC, a defence minister commented on claims that MoD officials have been instructed not to talk about classified information while travelling in Chinese cars.
The minister stated that the MoD is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, however emphasised that security is a issue in every modern vehicles.
We have a fleet of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
But whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our staff is not to plug MoD technology into their car, not to have 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 secure locations. This is a wise and sensible thing for anyone concerned about security.
When it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using every cars from China, Pollard responded: That is exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Broader Security Context
The announcement comes as reports from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable public transport and bring chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly directing laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
This wider defence environment highlights the significance of strong measures and caution in every areas of government activities, including transport usage to discussions practices.
