An defense minister has stated that the Ministry of Defence is currently examining the possible threats posed by Chinese-made vehicles, and staff have been told to avoid talking about secret matters in any cars.
Security Guidance for Defence Personnel
During a recent interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to discuss secret information while travelling in Chinese cars.
The minister stated that the ministry is “examining” cars from China within its fleets, however stressed that security is a issue in every contemporary cars.
We have a collection of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles represent a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting MoD technology into their car, not to have discussions at a secret level in any vehicle, because of the growing threats of surveillance that exist in all vehicle, to restrict those secret talks in protected areas. This is a prudent and sensible thing for anyone worried about safety.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, Pollard replied: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Security Background
This revelation follows claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could allow China to disable public transport and cause chaos to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly shining lasers at RAF aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
This broader defence environment underscores the importance of robust protocols and vigilance in all aspects of government operations, including transport use to discussions practices.
