An defense official has revealed that the MoD is currently examining the possible threats posed by Chinese cars, and staff have been advised to refrain from talking about classified matters in all cars.
Safety Advice for Defence Personnel
During a recently aired interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed reports that MoD officials have been told not to talk about secret information while riding in Chinese cars.
The minister explained that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, however noted that safety is a concern in every contemporary cars.
We have a fleet of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles account for a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our people is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence technology into their car, not to have discussions at a classified classification in any kind of car, due to the increasing threats of surveillance that are present in all automobile, to restrict those confidential talks in secure locations. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone worried about safety.
After it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using all Chinese vehicles, Pollard replied: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Defence Context
The announcement follows reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could enable China to switch off buses and bring chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel has been directing lasers at Royal Air Force pilots, labeled a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
The wider defence situation highlights the significance of strong measures and vigilance in every areas of government activities, including transport usage to communication practices.
