A defense minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is actively examining the possible security risks associated with Chinese cars, while personnel have been told to avoid discussing classified information in any cars.
Safety Guidance for MoD Personnel
During a recently aired appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed reports that MoD officials have been instructed not to talk about secret material while travelling in China-made cars.
The minister said that the ministry is “examining” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however emphasised that security is a issue in every modern vehicles.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
However whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our people is to avoid connecting MoD technology into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a secret classification in any car, due to the growing risks of surveillance that exist in all vehicle, to only have those confidential conversations in secure locations. This is a wise and sensible thing for anyone worried about security.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to cease using all Chinese vehicles, Pollard responded: ‘That’s exactly what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Defence Context
The announcement follows reports from Norway and Denmark have warned the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off public transport and bring disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship has been shining lasers at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.
This broader defence environment highlights the importance of robust protocols and caution in every areas of government operations, from vehicle use to discussions habits.
