An defense minister has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is currently examining the possible security risks associated with Chinese-made vehicles, and personnel have been told to avoid talking about secret matters in any vehicles.
Security Guidance for MoD Personnel
During a recently aired interview on LBC, a defence minister addressed reports that MoD officials have been instructed not to discuss secret information while riding in Chinese vehicles.
The minister explained that the ministry is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but noted that safety is a issue in every contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles account for a tiny fraction.
However whether you’re driving a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our people is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their car, not to have discussions at a classified level in any car, because of the increasing threats of surveillance that exist in every single automobile, to restrict those confidential talks in secure locations. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about safety.
When it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard replied: That is exactly what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Defence Context
The revelation follows reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the presence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could allow China to disable buses and cause chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship was reportedly directing laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
The broader security environment highlights the importance of robust measures and vigilance in every aspects of government operations, including vehicle use to discussions habits.
