A defence official has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is currently examining the potential threats posed by Chinese cars, while personnel have been told to avoid talking about classified information in any vehicles.
Safety Advice for Defence Staff
During a recently aired appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on claims that MoD officials have been told not to discuss secret material while riding in China-made vehicles.
He said that the ministry is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, however emphasised that safety is a issue in every contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD 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 staff is not to plug MoD devices into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a classified classification in any kind of car, due to the growing risks of eavesdropping that are present in all automobile, to restrict those confidential conversations in protected areas. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about security.
After it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to stop using all Chinese vehicles, Pollard responded: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Wider Security Background
This announcement comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could enable China to switch off public transport and cause disruption to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian spy ship has been directing lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
The wider security environment highlights the importance of strong protocols and caution in every areas of government activities, from vehicle usage to communication practices.
