A defence official has stated that the MoD is currently looking into the potential threats posed by Chinese cars, while personnel have been advised to refrain from discussing secret information in any cars.
Safety Guidance for Defence Staff
During a recent interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed reports that MoD staff have been told not to discuss secret material while travelling in China-made cars.
He explained that the MoD is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, but emphasised that security is a issue in all contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles represent a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our people is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a secret level in any kind of vehicle, due to the increasing threats of surveillance that are present in every single vehicle, to only have those confidential talks in protected areas. This is a wise and sensible thing for everyone concerned about safety.
When it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using all cars from China, Pollard replied: ‘That’s exactly what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Wider Defence Background
The announcement comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese electric buses, which could enable China to disable buses and bring chaos to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly shining lasers at RAF pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
This wider defence situation highlights the significance of strong protocols and vigilance in every aspects of government activities, including vehicle usage to discussions habits.
