An defense minister has revealed that the MoD is currently looking into the potential threats associated with Chinese-made cars, while personnel have been told to refrain from talking about classified matters in any cars.
Safety Advice for Defence Staff
In a recently aired appearance on a radio station, a defence minister addressed claims that MoD officials have been told not to discuss classified information while travelling in China-made vehicles.
He stated that the ministry is “investigating” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however emphasised that security is a concern in all modern vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles account for a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a classified level in any car, because of the growing threats of eavesdropping that exist in all automobile, to restrict those confidential talks in protected areas. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for everyone concerned about safety.
After it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to stop using all cars from China, the minister responded: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Security Context
This revelation follows claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off public transport and bring disruption to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia intelligence vessel has been shining lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.
This wider defence environment highlights the importance of strong measures and caution in all areas of official activities, from transport use to discussions practices.
