An defence minister has stated that the Ministry of Defence is actively looking into the possible security risks associated with Chinese-made vehicles, and staff have been told to avoid talking about classified matters in any cars.
Security Guidance for Defence Personnel
During a recently aired appearance on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been instructed not to talk about classified material while riding in China-made cars.
The minister stated that the ministry is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, however emphasised that security 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 represent a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re driving a Chinese car or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our people is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a secret classification in any kind of car, because of the increasing threats of eavesdropping that exist in all automobile, to restrict those secret conversations in secure locations. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone worried about security.
After it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to stop using all Chinese vehicles, the minister replied: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Security Context
The revelation comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have warned the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese buses, which could allow China to switch off buses and cause chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly directing lasers at RAF pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
The wider defence environment underscores the importance of robust measures and vigilance in every aspects of official activities, including vehicle use to discussions practices.
