Berlin  - Chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday offered Germany's good offices to help resolve a new gas dispute which has surfaced between Russia, the European Union and Ukraine.

The chancellor said after talks with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in Berlin that she would raise the issue with the European Commission.

Russia has called an agreement with the EU to modernize Ukraine's gas infrastructure an "unfriendly act," pointing out that Moscow was excluded from the talks.

Russia exports the bulk of its natural gas to the West through a pipeline system in Ukraine. Medvedev said Brussels had no right to make such a deal "without talking to the country whose product is being exported through the pipeline."

Merkel said Ukraine's gas infrastructure needed to be brought up to date, but there was "no need to make a conflict out of something that in my view should not be a conflict."

She said good will by the parties involved should be able to resolve the spat, possibly through a meeting of the EU-Russia consultation group.

The dispute revived memories of a gas row between Russia and Ukraine in January which cut off supplies to some EU member countries for more than a week. (dpa)