An defense minister has stated that the MoD is currently looking into the possible threats associated with Chinese cars, and personnel have been advised to avoid discussing classified information in all cars.
Safety Advice for Defence Staff
During a recently aired appearance on LBC, a defence minister commented on reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to discuss secret information while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
He explained that the MoD is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, however noted that safety is a issue in every modern cars.
Our department has a collection of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
However whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence devices into their car, to avoid having discussions at a secret classification in any kind of vehicle, because of the growing risks of surveillance that are present in all vehicle, to restrict those secret talks in protected areas. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone worried about safety.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using all cars from China, Pollard replied: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Defence Context
The announcement comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable buses and cause chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel has been directing laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
The wider defence situation underscores the significance of strong measures and caution in all areas of official operations, including vehicle usage to discussions practices.
