A defense official has stated that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the possible security risks associated with Chinese-made vehicles, while staff have been advised to refrain from talking about classified matters in all cars.
Safety Guidance for Defence Staff
In a recent appearance on LBC, a defence minister addressed claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to discuss classified material while travelling in China-made cars.
He stated that the MoD is “investigating” cars from China within its fleets, however noted that safety is a concern in all modern cars.
We have a collection of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
However whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our people is to avoid connecting MoD technology into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a classified level in any kind of car, because of the increasing risks of eavesdropping that are present in all automobile, to only have those secret talks in secure locations. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for everyone worried about security.
After it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using all cars from China, the minister replied: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Defence Background
This revelation follows reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off buses and cause chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly shining laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, labeled a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.
The broader security situation underscores the significance of robust measures and vigilance in every aspects of official operations, from vehicle usage to discussions habits.
