Belgian authorities announced last Saturday (July 25) the arrest of a Canadian-Chinese woman suspected of engaging in espionage activities during her internship at the NATO military headquarters in Belgium. The spokesperson for the Belgian federal prosecutor’s office stated on Tuesday (July 28) that the woman will remain in pretrial detention for a month. As this incident continues to unfold, more information about this Chinese-Canadian woman has come to light.
According to reports from Reuters, the spokesperson for the prosecutor’s office stated that the suspect now has 24 hours to appeal. The woman, identified as Claire Z., in her thirties, is not a student according to a security source. The source pointed out that she worked in the IT department at SHAPE. Due to her internship coming to an end, authorities expedited the investigative process.
Both NATO and Belgian authorities did not specify the exact nature of the suspect’s work at NATO. The responsibility for conducting security checks on interns rests with their home country, in this case Canada. The Canadian government has yet to comment on the situation.
Canadian Minister of Public Safety Gary Anandasangaree stated in a press conference on Monday that Canada will “continue to review our existing processes and security screening.”
“In this case, I believe a thorough investigation is crucial,” Anandasangaree added.
Investigative reporting by Dutch media outlet “Follow the Money” and its partners Le Soir, Knack, and La Lettre revealed that the detained intern is an artificial intelligence (AI) researcher named Claire Z. Two security officials confirmed her identity. The Chinese-Canadian woman had previously worked for several international organizations and might have provided sensitive information to the Chinese Communist Party.
The report mentioned that the Chinese researcher arrived in Mons, Belgium, in July 2025 to begin an internship in the IT department at SHAPE. She extended her initial six-month internship to a year.
Just before her internship was set to end, authorities raided her student dorm in Mons and her workplace at NATO last Thursday (July 23). She was arrested the following day. Prosecutors stated that she is accused of “engaging in espionage for a third country and participating in a criminal organization.”
“Follow the Money” and other media outlets’ investigations revealed that Z. is proficient in Chinese and English, specializing in AI. She obtained a master’s degree in computer science from a Canadian university in 2022 and subsequently published several academic papers.
The investigation showed that her internship had the approval of the Canadian authorities. The Canadian Ministry of Public Safety did not respond to inquiries regarding the matter.
“She holds a security clearance issued by Canada,” one security official stated and added that while she may have collected some information useful to the Chinese authorities, accessing classified information follows a “need-to-know basis” protocol, meaning classified information is strictly limited to personnel who must know it for their duties and not indiscreetly shared.
According to “Follow the Money” and other media reports, an official mentioned that Z. drew the attention of SHAPE’s internal counterintelligence department during her internship. The department subsequently shared relevant information with the Belgian Intelligence and Security Agency (ADIV) since they observed that “the behavior of this young Canadian woman far exceeded that of NATO interns.”
Another security official mentioned that Z. was seen lingering near the NATO headquarters and frequently inquired about hypothetical questions related to security breaches.
“Her suspicious behavior raised concerns,” the first official stated, without disclosing specific details of the behavior, “Recently, there has been more attention given to the threats posed by China (the CCP). Perhaps colleagues might wonder: What is this Chinese woman doing here?”
Z.’s lawyer declined to comment. According to two security officials, SHAPE interns may gather valuable information for Chinese intelligence agencies, such as personnel names and identities, internal security procedures, building floor plans, guard routes, and surveillance camera locations.
SHAPE spokesperson Martin O’Donnell stated, “There are currently no indications that NATO or SHAPE’s combat readiness, command control arrangements, or ongoing missions have been adversely affected.”
NATO is not the first European or international organization where Z. has worked. Her social media accounts show that she previously interned at the European Space Agency (ESA) research center in Italy for 10 months. She has also worked at the World Trade Organization in Switzerland and various Canadian government agencies.
Further investigation is needed to determine if this Chinese intern was indeed engaged in intelligence work and acting on behalf of the CCP. However, a senior official stated that this aligns with the CCP’s typical practices.
“We know that the Chinese government extensively uses its overseas diaspora for espionage and influence activities. Meanwhile, Beijing can leverage her non-Chinese citizenship to serve its own interests,” the official commented. “China does not recognize dual nationality.”
The Chinese Embassy in Brussels stated that they are not aware of the specifics of this case but that there doesn’t appear to be any Chinese citizens involved.
According to Belgian media outlet De Morgen, Belgian Defense Minister Theo Francken responded to the case by stating, “Counterintelligence work is still a top priority for security agencies such as the State Security Service (VSSE) and ADIV. Belgium is the world’s second most crucial diplomatic hub after the United States, so espionage activities are very common. The message we want to convey is to remain vigilant.”
According to Flemish public broadcaster VRT, Kenneth Lasoen, an intelligence and counterterrorism expert at the University of Antwerp, mentioned that this development was not surprising.
“We know that NATO and the EU are prime targets for our strategic adversaries,” Lasoen said on VRT Radio 1’s morning program “De Ochtend,” “Given that these institutions are on our territory, similar incidents happening here are only a matter of time. Organizations like NATO frequently face espionage activities.”
Lasoen specified that a significant amount of sensitive information can be gathered, particularly within NATO.
“There is a lot of information of strategic and tactical significance, including defense plans and equipment procurement information,” Lasoen explained.
Official confirmation or disclosure of who this arrested woman was working for has not been provided yet. However, Lasoen believes that some signals were revealed in the official explanations of the case.
“The official mention that someone is of Chinese descent might already be a fairly clear hint,” the intelligence and counterterrorism expert remarked.
Lasoen noted that recruiting interns for espionage activities is not unheard of.
“If this involves the Chinese government, we know that Chinese spies usually have only received basic espionage training. She might have received instructions to gather specific information,” Lasoen said, adding that she could later contact higher-ranking individuals and try to persuade them to engage in espionage activities.