An defense minister has revealed that the MoD is currently looking into the possible threats associated with Chinese-made vehicles, and personnel have been instructed to avoid discussing secret matters in any vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Personnel
During a recently aired interview on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to discuss secret material while travelling in China-made cars.
The minister said that the MoD is “examining” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but noted that security is a concern in every modern vehicles.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our people is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a classified classification in any kind of vehicle, due to the increasing threats of surveillance that exist in all automobile, to only have those secret talks in secure locations. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone worried about safety.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the ministry to stop using all cars from China, Pollard replied: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Wider Security Background
This revelation follows claims from Scandinavian countries 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 cause disruption to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship was reportedly shining laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
This broader defence environment highlights the significance of robust protocols and caution in all aspects of government activities, from transport use to discussions habits.
