A defense minister has confirmed that the MoD is actively investigating the potential threats associated with Chinese vehicles, and staff have been instructed to avoid talking about secret information in all cars.
Security Advice for Defence Staff
During a recently aired interview on LBC, a defence minister addressed claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to discuss secret information while travelling in China-made vehicles.
The minister explained that the MoD is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but stressed that safety is a issue in every modern cars.
Our department has a fleet of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles account for a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our people is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their car, to avoid having discussions at a secret level in any car, because of the growing threats of surveillance that are present in all vehicle, to only have those secret talks in secure locations. This is a wise and reasonable thing for anyone worried about security.
After it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, Pollard replied: That is exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Broader Defence Context
The revelation follows claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the presence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese buses, which could enable China to switch off public transport and cause chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly directing lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
The wider defence situation highlights the significance of strong protocols and caution in every areas of government activities, including vehicle use to discussions practices.
