An defence official has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently examining the potential threats associated with Chinese-made vehicles, while personnel have been advised to avoid talking about secret information in any cars.
Security Guidance for MoD Personnel
During a recently aired interview on a radio station, a defence minister addressed reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to talk about secret information while riding in China-made vehicles.
He stated that the MoD is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, but stressed that safety is a issue in all modern vehicles.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our people is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence devices into their car, not to have conversations at a secret classification in any kind of vehicle, due to the increasing threats of surveillance that are present in all vehicle, to only have those secret talks in protected areas. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone concerned about security.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to cease using every Chinese vehicles, the minister replied: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Security Context
This announcement follows reports from Norway and Denmark have warned the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off public transport and cause disruption to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship has been directing lasers at RAF aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
The wider security environment underscores the importance of strong measures and vigilance in every aspects of official activities, from transport use to discussions practices.
