A defense minister has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is currently examining the possible security risks posed by Chinese-made vehicles, while personnel have been advised to refrain from discussing secret matters in any vehicles.
Security Guidance for MoD Personnel
During a recent interview on LBC, a defence minister addressed reports that MoD officials have been told not to discuss secret information while riding in China-made vehicles.
The minister explained that the ministry is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but emphasised that security is a concern in every contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a collection of thousands of vehicles 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, what we’ve asked our people is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their car, to avoid having conversations at a classified level in any car, because of the increasing threats of eavesdropping that exist in all automobile, to restrict those confidential talks in protected areas. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone worried about safety.
When it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using every Chinese vehicles, the minister replied: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Defence Background
The announcement follows reports from Norway and Denmark have warned the UK to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable public transport and bring disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel has been shining laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
The wider defence environment underscores the importance of robust measures and caution in all areas of official activities, including vehicle use to discussions practices.
