<\/p>\n
Mohammadreza Pakatchian said he selected to review aerospace engineering at Carleton University since it was a \u201cgreat opportunity\u201d to further his skills and knowledge.<\/p>\n
In its acceptance letter to the Iranian, Carleton University offered him a scholarship, while an MP\u2019s office spoke with immigration officials about his student visa.<\/p>\n
But Canada\u2019s national security agencies aren\u2019t so keen on the 41-year-old doctoral student.<\/p>\n
They’ve flagged Pakatchian as a security threat, warning that he’s pursuing studies that can advance the Islamic Republic\u2019s weapons programs.<\/p>\n
Classified intelligence reports obtained by Global News allege that Pakatchian works for an Iranian company that has been sanctioned as a consequence of its role in weapons of mass destruction (WMD).<\/p>\n
He can be related to an Iranian academic whose research focuses on ballistic missiles and other military technology, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service wrote.<\/p>\n
Further, Pakatchian obtained his master\u2019s degree at an Iranian university known for its work on uranium enrichment, nuclear implosion and missile guidance, the CSIS report said.<\/p>\n
Upon completing his studies in Ottawa, CSIS added, Pakatchian intends to return to the identical sanctioned Iranian company that employs him to use what he has learned.<\/p>\n
In response to the national security reports, Pakatchian, who said he began studies at Carleton online in 2023, \u201crepresents a danger to the safety of Canada.\u201d<\/p>\n
His research interests \u201chave the potential of getting used for nefarious purposes,\u201d a Canada Border Services Agency report added in its report on Pakatchian.<\/p>\n
The \u201cknowledge he’ll gain through his studies might be used to contribute to advancing Iran\u2019s military and weapons systems,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n
On Feb. 17, immigration officials wrote that if Pakatchian continued pursuing his PhD at Carleton, \u201cthe expertise gained in Canada will likely be transferred and used to further Iran\u2019s WMD programs.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pakatchian didn’t reply to emails, and his lawyer declined to comment, saying he didn’t have his client\u2019s permission to talk.<\/p>\n
The CBSA and CSIS wouldn’t comment on the case.<\/p>\n
Nor did Carleton University reply to questions on why it accepted a doctoral student employed by a sanctioned Iranian company.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\tFedral Court\t\t\t\t<\/cite>
\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
The U.S. and Israeli war that began in February showed that Iran\u2019s military had amassed a major stockpile of missiles and drones.<\/p>\n
While the 1000’s of missiles Iran launched throughout the conflict weren’t state-of-the-art, they were a step above those it had used previously.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe performance of Iran\u2019s missile, and drone programs for that matter, within the war of 2026, was higher than what we\u2019ve seen previously,\u201d said Prof. Thomas Juneau.<\/p>\n
A Middle East expert on the University of Ottawa, Juneau said that a lot of Iran\u2019s missiles failed upon launch during 2024 fighting with Israel.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere’s a trend of improvement within the accuracy, but in addition within the reliability,\u201d said Juneau, who teaches on the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs.<\/p>\n
Matthew Levitt, a fellow on the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, agreed that Iran\u2019s drones and missiles proved to be \u201chighly developed\u201d throughout the recent war.<\/p>\n
\u201cAuthorities have long been concerned that Iranian scientists studying abroad could also be attempting to fill gaps in knowledge or components for these programs,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Juneau said he was not acquainted with Pakatchian\u2019s case, and it was possible the Iranian was pursuing studies in Canada for legitimate purposes.<\/p>\n
\u201cHowever it\u2019s equally conceivable that he might be here for the very specific purposes of coming back to Iran to work on something directly or not directly related to the missile or drone program,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe all know that Iran does that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nonetheless, the deal U.S. President Donald Trump negotiated to finish the war makes no mention of missiles, and he said last week it might be \u201cunfair\u201d not to permit Iran to own the weapons.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n When Pakatchian first applied to pursue his PhD at Carleton University in 2022, the dean not only said he was \u201cpleased\u201d to simply accept him but in addition offered him $8,000 in scholarships.<\/p>\n The cash was described as a solution to offset higher foreign student fees, based on Pakatchian\u2019s immigration file, which was released to Global News.<\/p>\n The records also show that Liberal MP Yasir Naqvi\u2019s office spoke with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada officials a few student visa for Pakatchian.<\/p>\n Carleton University is a component of Naqvi\u2019s Ottawa Centre riding.<\/p>\n The MP\u2019s staff said in an announcement to Global News that riding offices routinely helped constituents with immigration-related matters but were \u201cnot privy\u201d to information from CSIS or CBSA.<\/p>\n Records show the MP\u2019s office handled Pakatchian\u2019s case in July 2023 \u2014 4 months after national security officials had identified Pakatchian as a security threat.<\/p>\n Marked Secret\/Canadian Eyes Only, the papers describe international efforts to forestall Iran from obtaining the technology and materials needed to develop mass weapons.<\/p>\n The CBSA wrote that in 2018, Trump unilaterally pulled out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Motion put in place in 2015 to stop Iran\u2019s nuclear program.<\/p>\n In response, Tehran resumed \u201cproliferation activities, including amassing a stockpile of enriched uranium and installing more centrifuges,\u201d the CBSA wrote.<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s actions left sanctions as a remaining curb on Iran\u2019s mass weapons, and among the many entities targeted was MAPNA, where Pakatchian had worked since 2009.<\/p>\n Canada had sanctioned MAPNA under its Special Economic Measures Act in 2016, citing the corporate for its \u201cgrave breach of international peace and security.\u201d<\/p>\n Pakatchian is a MAPNA designer of axial compressors, which\u00a0power jet engines\u00a0and have each business and military uses, based on the CBSA.<\/p>\n When he applied for a student visa to attend Carleton, he named Mahmoud Mani, a professor at Amirkabir University in Tehran, as a reference.<\/p>\n Mani\u2019s research is \u201cunequivocally and overwhelmingly focused on military\u00a0end-use\u00a0applications,\u201d reminiscent of missile aerodynamics, rocket engines and ballistic missiles, CSIS said.<\/p>\n At Carleton\u2019s department of aerospace engineering, Pakatchian had chosen as his academic supervisor a professor who was conducting research involving fighter jets and drones, CSIS added.<\/p>\n \u201cThat is a fantastic opportunity for me due to Carleton mechanical engineering infrastructures and school members,\u201d Pakatchian wrote in a letter to Canada\u2019s immigration department.<\/p>\n \u201cSo once I come back to my home country, I’ll have the option to make use of my acquired knowledge on this area to enhance my current career through the use of recent cutting-edge methods,\u201d he wrote in one other letter.<\/p>\n But in its report on Pakatchian, the CBSA wrote \u201cintangible technology transfer which could advance Iranian military programs\u201d are a security threat to Canada.<\/p>\n If Pakatchian \u201cis allowed to pursue his studies in Canada, an intangible transfer of technology and knowledge could happen which could advance Iran\u2019s military programs and capabilities,\u201d the agency wrote.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/p>\n Pakatchian\u2019s immigration records indicate that he arrived in Canada in 2023, the identical 12 months he began his studies at Carleton and co-authored a paper with certainly one of the university\u2019s professors.<\/p>\n His current whereabouts are unknown, but in May, he brought a case before the Federal Court<\/a> searching for an order compelling the federal government to rule on his student visa.<\/p>\n He also wanted $10,000 to compensate him for the delays he claimed he faced awaiting his visa. The judge dismissed his application on June 9.<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t\tCarleton offered scholarship\t\t\t<\/h2>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\tCarleton University, Ottawa, Oct. 25, 2017. THE CANADIAN PRESS\/Adrian Wyld.\t\t\t\t<\/span>
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\tIranian missile that landed near the West Bank city of Jericho, June 8, 2026. (AP Photo\/Mahmoud Illean).\t\t\t\t<\/span>
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n