An defense official has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is actively investigating the possible security risks posed by Chinese-made cars, while personnel have been told to avoid talking about classified matters in all vehicles.
Safety Advice for Defence Personnel
During a recently aired appearance on LBC, a defence minister commented on claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to discuss secret material while riding in Chinese cars.
The minister said that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however noted that security is a concern in every modern vehicles.
We have a fleet of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles represent a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a car from another country, our instruction to our people is not to plug MoD devices into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a secret classification in any kind of vehicle, because of the growing risks of surveillance that are present in every single vehicle, to only have those secret conversations in protected areas. This is a wise and sensible thing for anyone concerned about safety.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using all cars from China, Pollard responded: That is exactly what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Broader Security Background
This announcement comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese buses, which could allow China to switch off public transport and cause chaos to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly shining laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” act by government representatives.
The broader defence situation underscores the importance of robust protocols and vigilance in all areas of government activities, including transport use to discussions practices.
