Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Russia panders to the Western countries in attempts to isolate the Islamic republic, IRNA news agency said on Saturday.

"They (Western states) have decided to launch attacks against a couple of Arab countries in the region that are our friends in order to create an atmosphere of fear in Iran, make Tehran obey its enemies," IRNA quoted Ahmadinejad as saying.

The UN, U.S. and Europe have imposed sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program, which Western powers suspect is aimed at creating a nuclear weapon. Iran denies the claim, saying it needs the program to generate civilian power.

On July 12 Russian President Dmitry Medvedev reiterated Russia's position that sanctions against Iran "are not producing the desired results" and admitted that Iran was "not behaving in the best manner."

"Recent remarks by the Russian President Dmitry Medvedev are in fact revealing that scenario and we regret the fact that Medvedev has become the spokesman of this project and the plot hatched by Iran's enemies," IRNA cited Iranian president as saying.

Ahmadinejad said Iran was still ready for the cooperation with Moscow.

International pressure on Iran, suspected by the West of pursuing a secret nuclear weapons program, increased in early February when Tehran announced it had begun enriching uranium to 20% in lieu of an agreement on an exchange that would provide it with fuel for a research reactor.

MOSCOW, July 24 (RIA Novosti)