A defence minister has stated that the MoD is actively looking into the possible threats associated with Chinese vehicles, and personnel have been told to avoid talking about secret information in all vehicles.
Safety Guidance for MoD Staff
In a recent appearance on LBC, a defence minister addressed claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been instructed not to talk about secret material while riding in China-made cars.
He explained that the MoD is “examining” cars from China within its fleets, however stressed that safety is a concern in every contemporary cars.
Our department has a fleet of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
But whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a secret classification in any vehicle, due to the growing risks of surveillance that exist in every single vehicle, to only have those confidential conversations in secure locations. That’s a wise and sensible thing for anyone worried about security.
After it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, the minister responded: That is precisely what we are looking into at the present time.”
Broader Security Background
The announcement follows claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the existence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese-made electric buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable buses and bring chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly directing laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
The broader security environment underscores the importance of robust protocols and caution in all areas of government activities, including vehicle usage to communication habits.
