An defense official has stated that the Ministry of Defence is actively investigating the possible threats posed by Chinese-made vehicles, while personnel have been told to refrain from discussing secret information in any vehicles.
Security Guidance for Defence Staff
In a recently aired appearance on LBC, a defence minister commented on reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to talk about classified information while riding in China-made cars.
The minister stated that the MoD is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, but stressed that safety is a issue in every contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles represent a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our people is to avoid connecting MoD technology into their car, not to have discussions at a secret level in any car, because of the growing threats of surveillance that exist in every single automobile, to restrict those confidential conversations in secure locations. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for everyone worried about security.
When it was put to him that it would be wise for the MoD to stop using every Chinese vehicles, the minister responded: That is precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Wider Security Background
The announcement comes as claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could enable China to disable buses and bring disruption to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly shining laser beams at RAF pilots, described as a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
This wider security environment highlights the importance of robust measures and caution in every areas of government operations, including vehicle use to discussions habits.
