An defence minister has stated that the Ministry of Defence is actively examining the possible security risks associated with Chinese cars, while staff have been advised to avoid discussing secret information in any vehicles.
Safety Guidance for MoD Staff
During a recently aired appearance on LBC, a defence minister commented on claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been instructed not to discuss classified information while riding in Chinese cars.
The minister said that the ministry is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, however emphasised that security is a issue in every contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our people is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a classified level in any kind of car, due to the growing threats of surveillance that are present in all automobile, to only have those secret talks in protected areas. That’s a wise and sensible thing for everyone concerned about safety.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to cease using all cars from China, the minister replied: That is exactly what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Broader Defence Background
The announcement follows claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the presence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese electric buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off buses and bring chaos to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship has been shining laser beams at RAF aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
This wider security situation highlights the significance of strong measures and caution in every aspects of government operations, from transport use to communication habits.
