An defence minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently looking into the possible security risks posed by Chinese-made vehicles, while staff have been told to avoid talking about classified information in all vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Staff
In a recently aired interview on LBC, a defence minister addressed claims that MoD officials have been instructed not to discuss secret material while travelling in Chinese cars.
The minister stated that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, but emphasised that safety is a issue in all contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of thousands of cars in the MoD and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re driving a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our staff is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence devices into their car, not to have conversations at a classified level in any car, due to the growing risks of surveillance that exist in every single vehicle, to restrict those secret conversations in protected areas. This is a wise and sensible thing for everyone worried about security.
After it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using every cars from China, the minister replied: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Wider Security Context
The announcement follows claims from Norway and Denmark have warned the UK to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable public transport and bring disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship was reportedly shining lasers at RAF pilots, labeled a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
This broader security environment highlights the importance of strong measures and caution in every areas of official activities, from transport usage to discussions habits.
