A defense official has revealed that the MoD is currently looking into the potential security risks associated with Chinese vehicles, and staff have been advised to avoid discussing secret matters in any cars.
Safety Guidance for Defence Personnel
In a recently aired interview on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on reports that MoD staff have been instructed not to discuss secret material while riding in Chinese vehicles.
He said that the ministry is “investigating” cars from China within its fleets, however stressed that security is a issue in all contemporary cars.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence devices into their car, to avoid having conversations at a classified classification in any vehicle, due to the increasing risks of eavesdropping that exist in all vehicle, to restrict those secret talks in protected areas. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone concerned about security.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to cease using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard replied: That is precisely what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Security Background
The revelation comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have warned the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off buses and cause chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship was reportedly shining lasers at RAF pilots, described as a “extremely risky” act by defence officials.
This broader defence situation underscores the importance of robust measures and caution in all areas of official activities, from transport usage to discussions practices.
