An defence minister has stated that the MoD is currently investigating the potential threats posed by Chinese-made vehicles, while personnel have been advised to refrain from talking about classified information in any vehicles.
Safety Advice for Defence Personnel
In a recently aired interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to talk about classified information while travelling in China-made cars.
He said that the MoD is “looking into” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but emphasised that security is a issue in every contemporary cars.
We have a collection of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles represent a very small number.
However whether you’re driving a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our people is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a secret level in any kind of vehicle, because of the growing threats of eavesdropping that are present in all automobile, to restrict those confidential conversations in secure locations. This is a wise and reasonable thing for everyone concerned about safety.
After it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to cease using all cars from China, Pollard responded: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Security Context
The announcement comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have warned the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off public transport and bring chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly directing lasers at RAF aircrew, labeled a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
This broader defence environment highlights the importance of strong measures and vigilance in all aspects of official activities, including vehicle usage to communication habits.
