A defense official has revealed that the MoD is actively investigating the possible security risks posed by Chinese cars, and staff have been told to avoid talking about secret matters in all cars.
Security Advice for Defence Personnel
During a recently aired interview on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed claims that MoD staff have been instructed not to discuss secret material while riding in China-made vehicles.
He explained that the MoD is “investigating” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but stressed that security is a concern in all contemporary cars.
Our department has a fleet of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their car, to avoid having conversations at a classified level in any kind of vehicle, because of the increasing threats of surveillance that are present in every single automobile, to restrict those confidential conversations in secure locations. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about security.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using every cars from China, the minister responded: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Defence Background
This announcement comes as claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the United Kingdom to the presence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese electric buses, which could allow China to switch off public transport and bring disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel has been shining laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.
The broader security environment highlights the significance of strong measures and caution in all areas of official operations, from transport usage to discussions habits.
