Alleged NATO Spy Case Exposes ‘Serious Lessons’ for Canada’s Security Screening, Minister Says

Subhadarshi Tripathy

10/6/20263 min read

Canada’s public safety minister says there are “serious lessons” to learn from the arrest of a Canadian NATO intern in Belgium who is accused of espionage.

Gary Anandasangaree appeared Monday before the House of Commons public safety and national security committee, where MPs questioned him for about an hour over how the intern received security clearance from Canada before working at the military alliance.

Belgian authorities arrested the intern on July 24, alleging she had spied on behalf of a foreign country and was a member of a criminal organization.

Media reports citing unnamed sources have identified China as the suspected country involved, though the allegations have not been proven in court.

The Chinese Embassy in Canada has rejected suggestions that the accused was acting on behalf of Beijing, calling them “baseless speculations.”

Minister Acknowledges ‘Gaps’ in Screening

Anandasangaree said he asked both the RCMP and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service to review what happened.

He said he is now examining recommendations from those agencies.

“There will obviously be some serious lessons that come out of that process,” he told MPs.

According to the minister, federal departments conduct approximately 200,000 security screenings every year with support from CSIS and the RCMP.

“By and large, it is an unimpeachable record. Of course, there are gaps here, and I recognize that there are gaps,” he said.

“And that's what I think we need to improve on.”

The minister provided few specifics about what those gaps were or what policy changes the government is considering.

Accused Previously Subject of Federal Fraud Finding

Belgian courts generally do not publicly identify defendants in criminal investigations before trial.

A Peazzi investigation identified the accused as Biwei Zhang, who also uses the names Claire Zhang professionally and Catina Zhang on Facebook.

Zhang worked as a systems engineer and had a background in economics. She was an intern at NATO’s Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe, known as SHAPE, in Mons, Belgium.

In 2023, the Public Service Commission of Canada found that Zhang had committed fraud after applying for a Canada Border Services Agency position using two different names and email addresses and later failing to clarify whether she had submitted multiple applications.

That earlier finding became a central focus of MPs’ questioning.

“If someone is willing to lie to get a job with the federal government, how are we not more cautious?” Conservative MP Rhonda Kirkland asked.

Global Affairs Canada Gave Final Authorization

CSIS told the committee that working for NATO typically requires at least secret-level security clearance, and possibly a higher level depending on the position.

Officials explained that while Treasury Board establishes the federal government’s overall security-screening policy, final authorization is issued by the deputy head of the department responsible for the employee.

In Zhang’s case, witnesses told the committee that Global Affairs Canada provided the final clearance authorization.

Vanessa Lloyd, deputy director of policy and strategic partnerships at CSIS, said the agency had identified “opportunities for improvements” in the screening process.

Officials repeatedly declined to discuss certain details because investigations remain ongoing.

Opposition MPs Demand Answers

Opposition MPs expressed frustration with what they described as limited accountability and a lack of clear answers.

Bloc Québécois MP Claude DeBellefeuille said in French that she saw “gross incompetence” and “weaknesses” across several departments involved in the case.

The parliamentary investigation was initiated by the Conservatives and Bloc Québécois, who argue the government needs to determine whether warning signs were missed.

Conservative public safety critic Frank Caputo called the case “disgraceful.”

“It is a shame and I think it's actually disgraceful, dare I say minister, that it was Belgium that figured out a Canadian was spying rather than Canada,” Caputo said.

“Was this an intelligence failure? Yes, it was. Did Canada's international standing suffer because of this? Yes.… How did this happen? We have no answer.”

Accused Remains in Belgian Custody

Publicly available information indicates Zhang previously worked as an economist at Statistics Canada and as a systems engineer at the Canadian Space Agency.

She remains in custody in Belgium.

No findings of guilt have been made, and the espionage allegations against her remain before the Belgian justice system.

Meanwhile, Canadian MPs are continuing to examine how the screening and clearance process functioned and whether changes are needed to prevent similar cases.

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