A defense minister has confirmed that the MoD is actively examining the possible security risks posed by Chinese vehicles, while staff have been advised to refrain from talking about classified matters in all vehicles.
Safety Guidance for MoD Staff
During a recent appearance on a radio station, a defence minister addressed reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to talk about secret material while travelling in China-made cars.
He stated that the MoD is “examining” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but emphasised that safety is a concern in all modern cars.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our people is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their car, not to have discussions at a secret level in any vehicle, because of the growing threats of surveillance that are present in every single automobile, to only have those confidential conversations in secure locations. That’s a wise and reasonable thing for anyone worried about safety.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, the minister replied: That is exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Security Context
The announcement comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable public transport and cause disruption to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship has been shining laser beams at RAF pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
The broader security situation underscores the significance of robust measures and caution in every areas of official operations, including transport use to communication practices.
