A defense official has confirmed that the MoD is currently investigating the possible security risks posed by Chinese-made cars, while staff have been advised to avoid talking about secret information in all vehicles.
Safety Guidance for Defence Staff
In a recently aired interview on a radio station, a defence minister addressed claims that MoD staff have been told not to talk about secret material while riding in Chinese cars.
He said that the MoD is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but emphasised that safety is a issue in all modern cars.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence technology into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a secret classification in any vehicle, due to the increasing risks of surveillance that are present in every single automobile, to restrict those secret talks in protected areas. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about security.
After it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard responded: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Security Context
This revelation follows reports from Scandinavian countries have warned the United Kingdom to the presence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable buses and bring chaos to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russian spy ship was reportedly shining lasers at Royal Air Force pilots, labeled a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.
The broader security environment highlights the importance of strong measures and vigilance in all aspects of official activities, from vehicle use to discussions practices.
