An defense minister has revealed that the MoD is currently looking into the possible threats posed by Chinese-made cars, and personnel have been instructed to refrain from talking about secret matters in any vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Staff
In a recently aired interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been instructed not to discuss classified information while travelling in China-made vehicles.
He stated that the ministry is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, but stressed that security is a concern in all modern cars.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones account for a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a secret level in any car, because of the growing risks of eavesdropping that exist in every single vehicle, to restrict those confidential talks in protected areas. This is a wise and sensible thing for everyone concerned about safety.
After it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using every Chinese vehicles, the minister responded: That is exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Defence Context
This announcement follows reports from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could allow China to disable public transport and cause chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly shining laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, labeled a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
The wider security situation underscores the significance of robust measures and vigilance in all areas of official activities, from vehicle usage to communication habits.
