An defense minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the potential threats posed by Chinese-made cars, while staff have been advised to avoid discussing secret matters in all vehicles.
Safety Advice for Defence Staff
In a recently aired appearance on a radio station, a defence minister commented on claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to discuss secret material while riding in China-made vehicles.
The minister said that the ministry is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but noted that safety is a issue in all modern vehicles.
We have a fleet of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
But whether you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our people is to avoid connecting MoD technology into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a classified level in any kind of car, because of the increasing threats of surveillance that are present in all vehicle, to restrict those secret conversations in protected areas. This is a wise and reasonable thing for anyone worried about security.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to cease using every cars from China, Pollard replied: ‘That’s exactly what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Defence Context
This revelation comes as reports from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese electric buses, which could enable China to disable buses and bring disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship was reportedly shining lasers at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
This broader defence environment underscores the significance of robust measures and caution in every areas of official activities, including transport use to discussions habits.
