An defense minister has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is actively looking into the possible threats associated with Chinese-made cars, and personnel have been instructed to avoid talking about secret matters in all vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Personnel
During a recent appearance on LBC, a defence minister commented on claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to talk about secret material while riding in China-made cars.
He explained that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, however stressed that safety is a concern in all modern vehicles.
We have a fleet of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence technology into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a secret classification in any kind of vehicle, due to the increasing risks of surveillance that exist in every single automobile, to only have those secret conversations in secure locations. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about security.
After it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to stop using every Chinese vehicles, the minister replied: That is exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Defence Context
This announcement comes as claims from Scandinavian countries have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese electric buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off public transport and cause disruption to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship has been directing lasers at RAF aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
The wider security environment underscores the importance of robust protocols and caution in every areas of official operations, from vehicle use to communication habits.
