A defence minister has stated that the MoD is actively examining the potential security risks associated with Chinese-made vehicles, while staff have been told to avoid discussing classified information in any vehicles.
Safety Advice for Defence Staff
In a recent interview on LBC, a defence minister commented on claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been instructed not to talk about secret information while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
He stated that the ministry is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, but emphasised that safety is a concern in all contemporary cars.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones account for a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our staff is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a classified level in any vehicle, due to the increasing threats of eavesdropping that are present in all automobile, to only have those confidential conversations in protected areas. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for anyone concerned about security.
After it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to cease using all Chinese vehicles, the minister responded: ‘That’s exactly what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Defence Background
The announcement comes as reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could enable China to switch off buses and bring chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship has been directing laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.
The wider security environment highlights the importance of strong measures and caution in all aspects of official operations, from vehicle use to discussions habits.
