Canadian NATO Intern Accused of Spying Listed Liberal Campaign Volunteering and Multiple Federal Jobs

OTTAWA – August 7, 2026 – A Chinese-Canadian woman arrested in Belgium on suspicion of spying while interning at NATO previously listed volunteering for a Liberal Party of Canada election campaign and held positions at several Canadian government agencies, according to court documents and media reports.

Biwei Zhang, also known as Claire Zhang, was arrested last month by Belgian authorities while working as an intern in the IT department at NATO’s Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) in Mons. Belgian prosecutors charged her with espionage on behalf of a third country and membership in a criminal organization. Canadian national-security sources have said the country in question is China.

Zhang, 33, is a Canadian citizen of Chinese origin. She has not publicly commented on the allegations. Her pretrial detention was extended, and she has appealed the decision.

Court filings from a separate 2023 Public Service Commission case show Zhang described a work history dating back to 2017 that included roles at the National Research Council (analyzing ship movements), Statistics Canada (including agricultural data and later a rehiring), and Employment and Social Development Canada (developing predictive models for benefits programs). LinkedIn information linked to her also lists work at the Canadian Space Agency as a systems engineer and earlier placements at the European Space Agency and World Trade Organization.

In job applications submitted as evidence in the Federal Court case, Zhang listed past volunteering experience for the Toronto International Film Festival and an “election campaign for Liberal Party of Canada,” without specifying further details. The federal Liberal Party stated it had no record of her holding any formal campaign role.

The same court records detail a finding that Zhang committed fraud by submitting two applications under slightly different names and writing the same civil-service exam twice for a Canada Border Services Agency competition in 2019, contrary to rules. She was ordered to complete an ethics course if she rejoined the public service within a year. Her appeal of that ruling was denied in 2024.

Zhang received federal security clearance for the NATO internship, which was sponsored by Global Affairs Canada. Canadian Security Intelligence Service officials have been involved in the investigation from the outset, according to Prime Minister Mark Carney, who said Canada would take lessons from the situation regarding screening processes.

NATO has stated that operational readiness was not affected. The case remains before Belgian courts.

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Keenan Hutka

Publisher of RL News. Covers Kenora, Northwestern Ontario, and Central Canada — local stories, national politics, and the war in Ukraine.

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