A defense minister has revealed that the MoD is actively examining the potential threats posed by Chinese-made vehicles, while personnel have been told to avoid talking about secret information in all vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Staff
During a recently aired appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on claims that MoD officials have been instructed not to discuss secret material while riding in Chinese vehicles.
The minister stated that the MoD is “examining” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however stressed that safety is a issue in every contemporary vehicles.
We have a collection of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles account for a very small number.
However whether you’re driving a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence devices into their car, to avoid having conversations at a secret level in any vehicle, due to the growing risks of eavesdropping that are present in all vehicle, to restrict those confidential conversations in secure locations. That’s a wise and reasonable thing for anyone worried about security.
When it was put to him that it would be wise for the MoD to cease using every cars from China, Pollard responded: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Security Context
The revelation comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have warned the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese buses, which could allow China to switch off public transport and cause chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian intelligence vessel has been directing lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.
The wider defence situation highlights the importance of strong protocols and caution in every areas of government activities, including vehicle usage to discussions habits.