A defense official has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the possible threats associated with Chinese vehicles, while personnel have been instructed to avoid discussing secret information in all vehicles.
Safety Guidance for MoD Staff
In a recent interview on LBC, a defence minister addressed reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to discuss classified material while riding in China-made vehicles.
He stated that the ministry is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, however noted that safety is a issue in all contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our staff is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence technology into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a secret level in any vehicle, due to the increasing threats of surveillance that are present in all automobile, to only have those secret conversations in secure locations. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for anyone concerned about security.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, Pollard responded: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Defence Background
This announcement follows claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could allow China to switch off buses and bring disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly shining lasers at RAF pilots, labeled a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
This wider security situation underscores the significance of robust measures and caution in all areas of government operations, from vehicle use to discussions habits.
