An defence official has stated that the MoD is actively investigating the potential threats posed by Chinese-made vehicles, and staff have been instructed to refrain from talking about classified matters in any vehicles.
Safety Guidance for Defence Personnel
In a recent interview on LBC, a defence minister addressed claims that MoD officials have been told not to discuss classified information while travelling in Chinese cars.
He explained that the ministry is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but stressed that security is a concern in every modern vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles represent a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a secret classification in any vehicle, because of the growing risks of surveillance that are present in all vehicle, to only have those secret talks in protected areas. This is a wise and sensible thing for everyone concerned about safety.
After it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using every cars from China, Pollard responded: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Defence Context
This announcement follows reports from Norway and Denmark have warned the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made electric buses, which could enable China to switch off buses and bring disruption to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly directing lasers at RAF aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
The wider defence environment underscores the importance of robust protocols and vigilance in all areas of official operations, including transport use to communication habits.