An defence minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is actively looking into the possible threats associated with Chinese-made vehicles, while personnel have been instructed to refrain from discussing secret matters in all vehicles.
Security Guidance for MoD Personnel
In a recent interview on a radio station, a defence minister commented on claims that MoD staff have been told not to discuss classified information while riding in Chinese cars.
He stated that the MoD is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but noted that safety is a issue in all modern cars.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
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 MoD devices into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a classified level in any car, due to the growing threats of eavesdropping that exist in every single vehicle, to only have those secret conversations in secure locations. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about security.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard responded: ‘That’s exactly what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Defence Context
The announcement comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have warned the United Kingdom to the presence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable public transport and cause chaos to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship has been shining laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
The broader security situation underscores the importance of robust protocols and caution in every aspects of official operations, including transport use to discussions practices.
