A defence minister has revealed that the MoD is actively investigating the potential threats associated with Chinese cars, while staff have been told to avoid talking about classified matters in any cars.
Security Advice for MoD Personnel
In a recently aired interview on a radio station, a defence minister addressed claims that MoD officials have been instructed not to talk about classified information while travelling in China-made vehicles.
He stated that the MoD is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, however noted that safety is a concern in all contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our people is not to plug Ministry of Defence technology into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a classified level in any kind of car, due to the increasing threats of surveillance that exist in every single vehicle, to only have those secret talks in protected areas. That’s a wise and sensible thing for anyone concerned about safety.
After it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using all cars from China, Pollard replied: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Defence Background
This announcement follows reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could allow China to disable buses and cause disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship was reportedly shining laser beams at RAF aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
This broader defence situation highlights the significance of robust protocols and caution in all areas of official activities, including transport usage to communication practices.
