A defense minister has stated that the Ministry of Defence is currently looking into the potential security risks associated with Chinese-made cars, while personnel have been told to avoid discussing secret matters in any cars.
Security Guidance for MoD Staff
During a recent appearance on LBC, a defence minister addressed reports that MoD staff have been told not to discuss secret information while travelling in China-made vehicles.
The minister stated that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but noted that safety is a issue in every modern cars.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
But whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a car from another country, our instruction to our people is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their car, to avoid having conversations at a secret classification in any kind of vehicle, due to the growing risks of surveillance that are present in all vehicle, to only have those secret talks in protected areas. That’s a wise and sensible thing for everyone concerned about security.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using all Chinese vehicles, Pollard replied: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the present time.”
Broader Defence Background
The announcement comes as claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the United Kingdom to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable public transport and bring chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship was reportedly shining laser beams at RAF pilots, labeled a “highly dangerous” act by government representatives.
The wider security situation underscores the importance of robust measures and caution in all aspects of government operations, including vehicle use to discussions practices.
