A defence minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is actively looking into the potential threats associated with Chinese cars, while personnel have been advised to refrain from talking about secret matters in any vehicles.
Security Guidance for Defence Personnel
During a recently aired interview on LBC, a defence minister addressed claims that MoD officials have been instructed not to talk about secret material while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
He said that the MoD is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but stressed that security is a issue in every contemporary cars.
Our department has a collection of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
However whether you’re driving a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our staff is to avoid connecting MoD technology into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a classified level in any car, due to the growing risks of eavesdropping that are present in all vehicle, to restrict those confidential talks in protected areas. That’s a wise and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about security.
After it was put to him that it would be wise for the MoD to cease using all Chinese vehicles, the minister responded: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Security Background
The revelation follows claims from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the presence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made electric buses, which could allow China to switch off buses and bring disruption to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian spy ship has been shining lasers at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
The broader defence environment underscores the significance of strong protocols and vigilance in all aspects of official operations, including vehicle usage to communication practices.
