Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad yesterday rejected as "illegal" a UN Security Council demand that requires Tehran to suspend its uranium enrichment work, saying that his country would continue its nuclear activities without any fear, the state television reported.

Iran's nuclear activities were "within international regulations", Ahmadinejad was quoted by the state-run television as saying.

The Iranian president said Tehran will not give in to pressures to stop its nuclear program.

"Mounting threats and pressures against Iran's peaceful nuclear activities won't cause even one iota of hesitation in the will of the Iranian nation to continue on this path (nuclear technology),"Ahmadinejad said.

"Iran won't be intimidated," he said.

Meanwhile, the president also rejected UN Security Council sanctions against the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)for conducting a nuclear test.

"Some western countries have turned the UN Security Council into a weapon to impose their hegemony, and issue resolutions against countries that oppose them."

The UN Security Council passed a resolution on Saturday to impose sanctions on the DPRK, and demanded that the country abandon its nuclear program immediately.

In recent days, Iran's top officials, especially President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, have reiterated many times that Iran would not step back on its legal nuclear rights, warning the West not to imagine that the country would suspend uranium enrichment for even one day.

The UN Security Council adopted a resolution in late July, urging Tehran to suspend all enrichment-related and reprocessing activities by Aug. 31, including research and development, or face international sanctions.

Despite Tehran's failure to meet the UN demand, EU foreign ministers decided in September, to continue serious talks with Tehran in efforts to solve Iran's nuclear issue through diplomacy.

However, the United States has been trying to seek possible international sanctions on Iran since Aug. 31.