A defence minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the potential threats posed by Chinese-made cars, while staff have been instructed to avoid discussing classified matters in any vehicles.
Safety Guidance for Defence Personnel
In a recently aired appearance on a radio station, a defence minister commented on claims that MoD staff have been instructed not to talk about secret material while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
He explained that the MoD is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, but emphasised that safety is a concern in all modern cars.
We have a collection of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles account for a tiny fraction.
But whether you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our people is to avoid connecting MoD technology into their car, to avoid having conversations at a classified level in any kind of car, due to the increasing risks of eavesdropping that exist in all vehicle, to only have those secret conversations in secure locations. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about security.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to stop using all cars from China, Pollard replied: That is exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Security Context
The revelation comes as claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could enable China to disable buses and bring chaos to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship has been directing laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, labeled a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
The wider security environment highlights the importance of strong protocols and caution in every areas of government activities, including vehicle usage to discussions habits.
