An defence minister has stated that the MoD is actively looking into the potential threats posed by Chinese-made vehicles, while personnel have been instructed to avoid discussing classified matters in all vehicles.
Safety Advice for Defence Staff
In a recently aired appearance on a radio station, a defence minister addressed reports that MoD staff have been told not to discuss classified material while travelling in Chinese cars.
He explained that the MoD is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, however noted that security is a concern in all modern cars.
We have a fleet of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles represent a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our people is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence technology into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a classified classification in any kind of car, due to the increasing risks of eavesdropping that are present in every single vehicle, to only have those secret talks in secure locations. This is a prudent and sensible thing for anyone worried about security.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, the minister responded: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Defence Context
This announcement follows claims from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the existence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese buses, which could allow China to disable public transport and bring disruption to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian spy ship was reportedly shining lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” act by government representatives.
This broader security situation underscores the significance of strong measures and vigilance in all aspects of official operations, including transport usage to discussions practices.
