A defence official has stated that the MoD is currently looking into the potential security risks posed by Chinese-made vehicles, while staff have been instructed to refrain from discussing secret information in all cars.
Safety Guidance for Defence Staff
During a recently aired interview on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed reports that MoD staff have been instructed not to discuss secret information while riding in China-made vehicles.
He said that the MoD is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, but stressed that safety is a issue in every modern vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
But whether you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our people is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a classified level in any vehicle, because of the increasing risks of eavesdropping that exist in all automobile, to restrict those confidential conversations in secure locations. This is a wise and sensible thing for anyone worried about safety.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to cease using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard responded: That is precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Defence Background
This announcement comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted 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 bring chaos to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship has been shining laser beams at RAF aircrew, labeled a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
The wider defence situation underscores the significance of robust measures and caution in every areas of official activities, including transport usage to communication practices.
