An defense official has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the possible threats posed by Chinese vehicles, and staff have been advised to avoid discussing secret matters in all cars.
Security Advice for Defence Staff
During a recent appearance on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to talk about classified information while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
The minister explained that the ministry is “investigating” cars from China within its fleets, however emphasised that safety is a concern in every contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a collection of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones account for a very small number.
But whether you’re driving a Chinese car or a car from another country, our instruction to our people is not to plug MoD devices into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a secret classification in any kind of car, due to the increasing threats of surveillance that are present in all vehicle, to restrict those confidential conversations in protected areas. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone concerned about safety.
When it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, Pollard replied: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Defence Context
The announcement follows claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable buses and cause chaos to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship was reportedly shining lasers at RAF aircrew, labeled a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
The wider security environment underscores the importance of robust measures and vigilance in all aspects of government operations, including transport use to discussions habits.
