controversial intelligence-gathering program run by Canada’s foreign affairs ministry operates in a “distinctly grey zone”, puts its officers at risk and breaches global diplomatic conventions, says a damning watchdog report.

Canada’s global security reporting program (GSRP), a critical part of the foreign ministry’s security and intelligence footprint overseas, places officers in countries with “poor human rights records” including Ethiopia, India, Egypt, Turkey, Israel and China.

The program has received renewed scrutiny in recent months following reports that Michael Spavor, a Canadian jailed in China for nearly three years, was seeking a multimillion-dollar settlement from Canada’s federal government, alleging he “unwittingly” provided intelligence on North Korea to Michael Kovrig, an officer with the GSRP, who then shared that information with Canada and “Five Eyes” allies.

The pair were imprisoned in China from December 2018 to September 2021 and charged with espionage.

The newly revealed investigation by the national security and intelligence review agency uncovered troubling aspects of the program, finding that officers lacked “adequate training” and the program did not have sufficient risk assessment and security protocols within to ensure officers – and their sources – were protected.

In addition, the watchdog warned “it was not clear if all officers understood that once they are no longer afforded diplomatic immunity, a receiving state may seek retaliatory measures against them”.

The report was completed three years ago but a public release was delayed because of concerns over the political sensitivities of Kovrig and Spavor’s arrests and detention in China.