An defense official has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is actively examining the potential security risks posed by Chinese-made vehicles, while staff have been advised to refrain from talking about secret matters in any vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Staff
During a recently aired interview on LBC, a defence minister commented on claims that MoD staff have been told not to discuss secret material while riding in Chinese cars.
He explained that the MoD is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, but emphasised that safety is a issue in every contemporary vehicles.
We have a fleet of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles represent a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re driving a Chinese car or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our staff is not to plug MoD devices into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a secret classification in any car, because of the increasing threats of eavesdropping that are present in all vehicle, to restrict those secret talks in protected areas. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for everyone worried about security.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to cease using all cars from China, the minister responded: That is exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Defence Context
This announcement follows reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable public transport and cause disruption to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia intelligence vessel has been shining laser beams at RAF aircrew, labeled a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
The broader defence environment underscores the significance of robust protocols and vigilance in all aspects of government operations, including vehicle usage to communication practices.
