An defence official has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the potential threats posed by Chinese-made vehicles, while staff have been told to avoid talking about classified matters in all vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Personnel
In a recent interview on LBC, a defence minister commented on claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been instructed not to discuss secret material while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
The minister stated that the ministry is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, however emphasised that safety is a concern in every contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a collection of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles account for a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our people is not to plug MoD technology into their car, to avoid having conversations at a secret level in any kind of vehicle, due to the increasing threats of eavesdropping that are present in all automobile, to restrict those secret talks in protected areas. That’s a wise and sensible thing for everyone worried about safety.
After it was put to him that it would be wise for the MoD to stop using all cars from China, the minister responded: That is exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Defence Background
The revelation comes as claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable public transport and cause chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship was reportedly shining lasers at RAF aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” act by defence officials.
This wider security environment highlights the importance of robust measures and caution in all aspects of government activities, from transport use to discussions habits.
