A defence official has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently looking into the possible security risks posed by Chinese-made vehicles, while personnel have been advised to avoid talking about secret information in any vehicles.
Safety Guidance for Defence Personnel
In a recently aired appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed claims that MoD staff have been told not to discuss secret information while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
He stated that the ministry is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, however emphasised that safety is a concern in every contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles account for a tiny fraction.
However whether you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their car, to avoid having conversations at a secret level in any kind of vehicle, due to the increasing risks of surveillance that are present in every single automobile, to only have those secret conversations in secure locations. This is a wise and sensible thing for everyone worried about security.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to cease using all cars from China, Pollard responded: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Security Context
The announcement follows claims from Scandinavian countries have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable public transport and bring disruption to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship has been directing lasers at RAF aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
The broader defence environment underscores the significance of strong protocols and vigilance in every aspects of government activities, including transport use to communication habits.
