A defence minister has stated that the MoD is currently investigating the potential threats posed by Chinese-made vehicles, while personnel have been told to avoid talking about classified matters in all vehicles.
Security Advice for Defence Personnel
During a recent appearance on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on reports that MoD officials have been told not to talk about classified information while travelling in Chinese cars.
He said that the MoD is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, but stressed that safety is a issue in every contemporary cars.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles account for a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our staff is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence technology into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a secret level in any car, due to the growing risks of eavesdropping that exist in all automobile, to restrict those confidential conversations in secure locations. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone concerned about security.
When it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using all cars from China, the minister responded: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Defence Context
The announcement comes as claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the United Kingdom to the presence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off buses and cause disruption to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship was reportedly shining lasers at RAF aircrew, labeled a “highly dangerous” act by government representatives.
This wider security situation underscores the importance of robust measures and caution in all areas of government activities, including transport usage to communication practices.
