An defense official has confirmed that the MoD is currently examining the potential security risks associated with Chinese vehicles, and personnel have been told to avoid talking about classified matters in any vehicles.
Safety Guidance for Defence Personnel
During a recent interview on LBC, a defence minister addressed claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to talk about secret information while travelling in China-made cars.
The minister explained that the MoD is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, however noted that security is a issue in every modern vehicles.
Our department has a collection of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles account for a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re driving a Chinese car or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is not to plug MoD devices into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a classified classification in any vehicle, because of the growing risks of surveillance that exist in all vehicle, to restrict those confidential talks in protected areas. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for everyone concerned about safety.
After it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using all Chinese vehicles, the minister responded: ‘That’s exactly what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Wider Security Context
The announcement follows reports from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the presence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable public transport and bring chaos to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly directing lasers at RAF aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.
This wider defence situation underscores the importance of strong measures and vigilance in every areas of official activities, from vehicle usage to discussions habits.
