A parliamentary committee in the House of Commons has agreed to review Canada’s security screening procedures following the arrest of a Canadian NATO intern on espionage charges by Belgian authorities.
The decision to conduct the review came after the Conservatives and Bloc Québécois called for an emergency committee meeting to investigate the spying accusations against the Canadian intern.
During a meeting of the public safety and national security committee on Monday, Members of Parliament from various parties agreed to prioritize three sessions to delve into the issue once Parliament resumes in September.
The committee plans to summon Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree as a witness and may call upon other relevant individuals to testify. The findings and recommendations resulting from the investigation will be reported to the House.
Although Belgian courts do not publicly disclose the identities of defendants in criminal cases before trial, a CBC News report identified the accused individual as Biwei Zhang. She is a systems engineer with an economic background who was interning at NATO’s Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) in Mons, Belgium.
The investigation revealed that Biwei Zhang is the legal name of the suspect, who professionally goes by Claire Zhang and uses Catina Zhang on her Facebook profile. Belgian authorities suspect Zhang of espionage on behalf of a foreign government and involvement in a criminal syndicate.
Concerns have been raised about Canada’s security screening process by Conservative public safety critic Frank Caputo, who highlighted the need for parliamentary scrutiny given the gravity of the allegations against Zhang. Caputo emphasized the urgency to review how an individual accused of spying could secure an internship within a crucial military alliance and questioned the effectiveness of security screening, information sharing, and monitoring protocols in place at the time.
The NATO internship obtained by Zhang required a thorough security clearance, which Canadian authorities, specifically the RCMP and CSIS, were responsible for conducting due to her Canadian citizenship.
Following the arrest of the alleged spy by Belgian authorities, Canada’s public safety minister pledged to investigate the matter thoroughly, acknowledging the seriousness of the charges. Prime Minister Mark Carney affirmed that Canadian officials have been actively engaged in the case since its inception.
CBC News investigations found that Zhang had previously held positions in various Canadian government departments. Her resume indicates past roles as an economist at Statistics Canada and a systems engineer at the Canadian Space Agency. In 2023, the Public Service Commission of Canada discovered that Zhang had engaged in fraudulent activities by applying for a position at the Canada Border Services Agency under multiple identities. Zhang’s application for a judicial review was dismissed by a federal judge in 2024.
Furthermore, Zhang’s professional history includes positions at the World Trade Organization in Geneva and the European Space Agency in Italy. She recently completed a master’s degree in computer science with a specialization in artificial intelligence from the University of Ottawa.
The day before the suspect’s arrest on charges of espionage and involvement in a criminal organization, Belgian authorities conducted searches at her residence and workplace at SHAPE, according to a statement from the Federal Prosecutor’s Office.
The ongoing investigation into the espionage case has intensified scrutiny on Canada’s security screening procedures for sensitive government roles.