An defence official has stated that the Ministry of Defence is actively looking into the possible security risks associated with Chinese-made vehicles, while staff have been told to refrain from talking about classified information in any vehicles.
Safety Guidance for Defence Personnel
During a recently aired appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been instructed not to discuss classified material while travelling in China-made vehicles.
The minister said that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, however emphasised that security is a issue in every contemporary vehicles.
We have a fleet of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones account for a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re driving a Chinese car or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our staff is not to plug MoD devices into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a classified level in any vehicle, due to the increasing threats of eavesdropping that exist in all automobile, to restrict those confidential talks in protected areas. This is a wise and reasonable thing for everyone concerned about security.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to cease using all cars from China, Pollard responded: That is precisely what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Defence Background
The revelation follows claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could enable China to disable public transport and bring disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship has been shining laser beams at RAF aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
The wider defence situation underscores the significance of robust protocols and vigilance in every aspects of official activities, from vehicle usage to communication practices.
