NATO’s headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, seen in August 2025; the flag of Sweden, NATO’s most recent entrant, can be seen at center-left. Belgian authorities recently arrested a Chinese-born Canadian national accused of spying for Beijing. (Shutterstock/Tobias Arhelger)

Canadian NATO Intern Accused of Spying for China

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Although NATO is halfway around the world from China, its growing presence in the Indo-Pacific has frustrated Beijing—and apparently led to greater espionage efforts.

A Canadian citizen serving as an intern at NATO’s Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) in Mons, Belgium, was arrested after being accused of spying for an undisclosed non-alliance country and for belonging to a criminal organization.

The individual, a woman who was not named but is originally from China, was arrested on Friday after authorities searched her home and workplace.

SHAPE serves as NATO’s military command center and is where operations are planned and conducted for the 32-member international alliance.

It is unclear how the investigation began or how officials were tipped off. Still, SHAPE’s security services alerted Belgian intelligence officials of their suspensions, which led to the searches and her subsequent arrest.

“Following a number of investigative tasks, an operation was carried out on Thursday 23, July, by the Charleroi FJP. Searches........

© The National Interest