The nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) has "no validity" if Iran's rights to carry out peaceful nuclear research were not accepted, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Sunday.

"If the signature of a treaty threatens the rights of a nation, it has no validity for that nation," Ahmadinejad told a gathering of members of Iran's Basij militia, local media reported. Top Iranian officials have expressed on several occasions that Iran would reconsider its nuclear policy if its rights to nuclear technology research were not accepted.

The hardline president made the remarks shortly after Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Hamid-Reza Asefi said on Sunday that Tehran "will not halt" its uranium enrichment and would reject any resolution adopted by the UN Security Council on Iran's nuclear issue.

Sunday's remarks by Iranian officials came as five permanent members of the UN Security Council are discussing a draft resolution presented by Britain and France, which would legally require Iran to freeze all uranium enrichment and reprocessing activities.

Iran has been reiterating that its uranium enrichment is aimed at producing fuel for nuclear power plant, while the United States accuses the Islamic republic of trying to make nuclear weapons.

(Xinhua News Agency May 8, 2006)