A parliamentary committee in the House of Commons has agreed to investigate the security screening procedures in Canada following the arrest of a Canadian NATO intern on espionage charges by Belgian authorities.
After calls from the Conservatives and Bloc Québécois for an emergency committee meeting to look into the spying allegations against the intern, MPs from various parties at the public safety and national security committee meeting decided to schedule three sessions to delve into the matter when Parliament resumes in September.
The committee plans to summon Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree and any other relevant witnesses for questioning. Subsequently, it will compile its findings and recommendations to present to the House.
Although the identity of the defendant in the criminal case in Belgium is usually not disclosed publicly, a CBC News investigation identified the accused as Biwei Zhang, a systems engineer with an economics background who served as an intern at NATO’s Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) in Mons, Belgium.
Biwei Zhang, also known professionally as Claire Zhang and as Catina Zhang on Facebook, is suspected by Belgian authorities of engaging in espionage on behalf of a foreign country and being affiliated with a criminal syndicate.
The concerns raised about Canada’s security screening processes were highlighted in an open letter by Conservative public safety critic Frank Caputo to the committee chair, stressing the need for parliamentary oversight given the gravity of the spying allegations against Zhang.
The internship at NATO that Zhang secured required a thorough security clearance, a vetting process typically handled by Canadian authorities such as the RCMP and CSIS due to her Canadian citizenship.
Following the arrest of the alleged spy by Belgian officials, 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 had been actively involved in the case since the beginning.
CBC News uncovered that Zhang had previously held positions within various Canadian government departments, including economist roles at Statistics Canada and systems engineer positions at the Canadian Space Agency. In 2023, the Public Service Commission of Canada found Zhang guilty of fraud for applying to the Canada Border Services Agency under multiple identities.
Zhang’s professional history also includes stints 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 at the University of Ottawa.
The day before her arrest on charges of espionage and involvement in organized crime, Belgian authorities conducted searches at Zhang’s residence and workplace at SHAPE, as per the country’s Federal Prosecutor’s Office.