A defence official has stated that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the potential security risks posed by Chinese-made vehicles, while staff have been instructed to avoid discussing secret matters in any cars.
Safety Guidance for Defence Staff
In a recently aired appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to discuss secret material while riding in China-made vehicles.
The minister said that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, but emphasised that safety is a issue in every contemporary vehicles.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles account for a tiny fraction.
But whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence technology into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a classified classification in any kind of vehicle, because of the increasing risks of surveillance that are present in every single vehicle, to only have those confidential talks in protected areas. This is a prudent and sensible thing for anyone concerned about security.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using all Chinese vehicles, the minister responded: That is exactly what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Broader Security Context
This revelation comes as reports from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the existence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off public transport and bring chaos to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russian spy ship was reportedly directing laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “extremely risky” act by defence officials.
The broader defence environment underscores the importance of robust protocols and vigilance in every aspects of government operations, including transport usage to communication practices.
