A defence minister has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is actively examining the possible threats posed by Chinese-made cars, while staff have been advised to avoid discussing secret information in any vehicles.
Safety Guidance for MoD Personnel
During a recently aired interview on LBC, a defence minister addressed reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been instructed not to discuss secret information while travelling in China-made cars.
The minister said that the MoD is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, but noted that safety is a concern in every modern vehicles.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles represent a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our staff is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their car, to avoid having conversations at a classified level in any vehicle, due to the increasing risks of surveillance that exist in all vehicle, to only have those confidential talks in secure locations. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone concerned about security.
When it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to stop using all cars from China, the minister replied: That is exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Defence Background
The announcement comes as reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could enable China to disable public transport and cause chaos to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly directing laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, labeled a “highly dangerous” act by government representatives.
This wider security situation highlights the significance of strong protocols and caution in all aspects of official activities, from transport use to communication habits.
