A defence minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is actively examining the possible threats posed by Chinese vehicles, while personnel have been advised to refrain from discussing classified information in all vehicles.
Security Guidance for Defence Staff
During a recently aired appearance on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to talk about classified information while riding in China-made cars.
He stated that the ministry is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but noted that security is a concern in every modern vehicles.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones account for a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our people is not to plug MoD technology into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a secret level in any kind of vehicle, due to the increasing risks of eavesdropping that are present in all vehicle, to only have those confidential talks in protected areas. This is a wise and reasonable thing for everyone concerned about security.
After it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using all cars from China, the minister replied: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Broader Defence Background
This announcement comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have warned the United Kingdom to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable public transport and cause disruption to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly shining lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
This broader defence environment underscores the significance of strong protocols and vigilance in every aspects of government operations, including transport use to discussions habits.
