A defense official has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is actively examining the potential security risks posed by Chinese-made vehicles, and personnel have been advised to refrain from talking about classified information in all cars.
Safety Guidance for MoD Staff
In a recent interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to talk about classified information while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
He explained that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however emphasised that security is a issue in every contemporary vehicles.
We have a fleet of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles represent a very small number.
But whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car 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 discussions at a secret level in any vehicle, due to the increasing threats of surveillance that exist in all vehicle, to restrict those confidential talks in protected areas. This is a prudent and sensible thing for anyone concerned about safety.
After it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to stop using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard replied: That is precisely what we are looking into at the present time.”
Broader Defence Background
The announcement follows reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could enable China to disable public transport and bring disruption to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly shining lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
This wider defence environment underscores the importance of strong measures and caution in every aspects of government operations, including vehicle use to communication practices.
