A defense official has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is currently looking into the potential security risks posed by Chinese-made vehicles, and personnel have been told to avoid discussing secret matters in any cars.
Safety Guidance for Defence Personnel
In a recently aired appearance on a radio station, a defence minister commented on claims that MoD officials have been instructed not to discuss classified material while travelling in China-made cars.
The minister said that the MoD is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, however stressed that safety is a concern in every contemporary vehicles.
We have a fleet of thousands of cars in the MoD and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their car, not to have conversations at a secret classification in any kind of vehicle, due to the increasing threats of eavesdropping that exist in all vehicle, to only have those confidential talks in secure locations. This is a wise and sensible thing for everyone concerned about safety.
When it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to cease using all cars from China, Pollard responded: That is exactly what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Defence Background
The announcement follows claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made electric buses, which could allow China to disable buses and bring chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship has been shining laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “extremely risky” act by defence officials.
The broader security situation highlights the significance of strong measures and vigilance in every areas of government activities, including transport use to discussions habits.
