A defense minister has stated that the MoD is currently examining the possible threats posed by Chinese vehicles, while personnel have been told to refrain from talking about secret matters in all vehicles.
Safety Advice for Defence Staff
In a recently aired interview on LBC, a defence minister commented on reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to talk about classified material while riding in Chinese cars.
He said that the MoD is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but emphasised that safety is a issue in every contemporary cars.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re driving 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 car, not to have conversations at a secret level in any car, because of the increasing risks of eavesdropping that exist in every single automobile, to only have those secret conversations in secure locations. This is a wise and sensible thing for everyone concerned about safety.
When it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using all cars from China, the minister replied: That is exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Security Context
The revelation follows claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the existence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could allow China to disable buses and bring chaos to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly shining lasers at Royal Air Force pilots, labeled a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.
The wider defence situation highlights the significance of strong protocols and vigilance in all aspects of official activities, from vehicle use to discussions practices.
