A defense official has stated that the MoD is actively investigating the potential threats posed by Chinese-made vehicles, and staff have been instructed to refrain from talking about secret matters in all cars.
Security Guidance for Defence Staff
In a recently aired interview on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed reports that MoD officials have been instructed not to discuss classified material while travelling in China-made cars.
The minister stated that the MoD is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but stressed that security is a issue in every contemporary cars.
Our department has a collection of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles account for a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our people is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a classified classification in any kind of car, because of the increasing risks of surveillance that exist in every single automobile, to only have those secret conversations in protected areas. This is a prudent and sensible thing for everyone worried about security.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, the minister replied: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Security Context
The revelation comes as claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable public transport and cause chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship has been directing lasers at RAF aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
The wider defence situation highlights the significance of robust measures and caution in all aspects of government operations, including transport use to discussions habits.
