An defence official has stated that the Ministry of Defence is actively examining the potential threats posed by Chinese vehicles, while staff have been advised to refrain from talking about secret information in any vehicles.
Safety Guidance for MoD Staff
In a recent interview on a radio station, a defence minister commented on claims that MoD officials have been told not to talk about classified material while travelling in China-made vehicles.
He said that the ministry is “investigating” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but noted that safety is a concern in every modern vehicles.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones account for a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their car, not to have conversations at a classified level in any vehicle, due to the increasing threats of eavesdropping that are present in all automobile, to only have those secret conversations in secure locations. This is a wise and reasonable thing for anyone worried about security.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using all cars from China, Pollard responded: That is exactly what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Broader Defence Background
The revelation follows reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could enable China to disable buses and cause disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly directing lasers at RAF aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” act by government representatives.
This broader security environment underscores the importance of robust measures and vigilance in all areas of official activities, from vehicle usage to communication habits.
