Oct. 2 (Bloomberg) -- Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said third countries shouldn't interfere in a planned natural-gas pipeline to Germany after a U.S. diplomat called for the project to be reconsidered.

``We hope that states outside the region that have nothing to do with the project won't try to influence its progress,'' Medvedev said today during talks in St. Petersburg with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

OAO Gazprom, which already supplies a quarter of Europe's gas, plans to increase export capacity by a third with the Nord Stream pipeline under the Baltic Sea. Michael Wood, the U.S. ambassador to Sweden, last month published a commentary saying Europe should consider alternatives to the project following the Russian invasion of Georgia.

``The most important project that has our attention and unceasing political support is Nord Stream,'' Medvedev said, as leading ministers of both the German and Russian governments looked on.

Gazprom plans to build the 1,200-kilometer (750-mile) pipeline with partners Wintershall Holding AG, E.ON Ruhrgas AG and Nederlandse Gasunie NV. Earlier today, Gazprom agreed to give E.ON a stake in its Yuzhno-Russkoye gas field following years of negotiations.

Medvedev was Gazprom's chairman before becoming president in May, while Nord Stream's chairman is Merkel's predecessor Gerhard Schroeder.

To contact the reporters on this story: Lucian Kim in St. Petersburg at lkim3@bloomberg.net; Lyubov Pronina in St. Petersburg at lpronina@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: October 2, 2008 10:03 EDT