A defence minister has confirmed that the MoD is currently investigating the potential threats posed by Chinese vehicles, and personnel have been told to refrain from talking about classified information in all cars.
Safety Advice for MoD Personnel
During a recently aired interview on a radio station, a defence minister commented on claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been instructed not to discuss classified information while travelling in Chinese cars.
He said that the MoD is “investigating” cars from China within its fleets, but noted that safety is a concern in every contemporary cars.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
But whether you’re driving a Chinese car or a car from another country, our instruction to our people is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a classified classification in any kind of vehicle, due to the growing threats of surveillance that exist in every single automobile, to restrict those secret conversations in protected areas. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for everyone worried about security.
When it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using all cars from China, Pollard responded: That is precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Wider Defence Context
The announcement follows claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off buses and cause disruption to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship has been shining laser beams at RAF aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.
The broader defence environment highlights the significance of robust measures and caution in every aspects of government operations, including vehicle use to discussions practices.
