WASHINGTON, May 13: Australian Prime Minister John Howard, who is in Washington for a meeting with President George Bush, has said his country is not seeking to change the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) to facilitate uranium sales to India.

President Bush, who is honouring his loyal ally with a state dinner early next week, is expected to ask Mr Howard to sell uranium to India.

Australia has the world’s largest uranium reserves and Indian leaders have said they expect Mr Bush to use his influence to persuade the Australian leader to sell the nuclear fuel to India.

Mr Howard told reporters in Washington he expected the issue to come up in talks with President Bush, Vice-President Dick Cheney, Energy Secretary Sam Bodman and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice over the next few days.

“I’m sure it will come up because it’s an important issue,” Mr Howard said.

But he said Australia was not planning to ask for changes to the treaty to allow the sales to go ahead.

“We’re not seeking any particular changes to it, no,” he said.

Mr Howard also predicted much debate in Australia in coming months about the nuclear issue, including within the opposition.

Some Australian politicians want the country’s decades-old policy of banning any new uranium mines overturned.