A defense minister has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is currently looking into the potential security risks associated with Chinese-made cars, while personnel have been told to refrain from discussing secret matters in any cars.
Safety Guidance for Defence Staff
In a recently aired interview on a radio station, a defence minister addressed reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been instructed not to discuss secret information while riding in Chinese vehicles.
The minister explained that the MoD is “examining” cars from China within its fleets, but noted that safety is a issue in every contemporary vehicles.
We have a collection of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles account for a tiny fraction.
However whether you’re driving a Chinese car or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is not to plug MoD devices into their car, to avoid having conversations at a secret level in any kind of car, due to the growing risks of eavesdropping that are present in all vehicle, to only have those confidential conversations in secure locations. This is a prudent and sensible thing for everyone concerned about security.
After it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using all cars from China, Pollard responded: That is precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Wider Defence Background
This revelation comes as reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could allow China to disable buses and cause chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly directing lasers at Royal Air Force pilots, labeled a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
This wider defence situation underscores the importance of robust protocols and caution in every areas of official operations, from transport use to discussions habits.
