A defence official has revealed that the MoD is currently investigating the possible security risks associated with Chinese vehicles, and personnel have been advised to avoid talking about classified information in all vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Staff
During a recently aired interview on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to talk about secret material while riding in Chinese vehicles.
The minister stated that the MoD is “investigating” cars from China within its fleets, however emphasised that safety is a issue in all contemporary cars.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles represent a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is not to plug MoD devices into their car, not to have conversations at a classified classification in any kind of vehicle, due to the increasing threats of eavesdropping that are present in all vehicle, to only have those confidential talks in secure locations. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone worried about security.
After it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, Pollard replied: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Defence Context
The revelation comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could enable China to switch off public transport and bring chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly shining lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
The wider defence situation highlights the importance of strong protocols and caution in every areas of official activities, including transport usage to discussions habits.
