The Kremlin said on Tuesday that it did not want to take part in "nuclear rhetoric" spread by the West after a media report that Russia was preparing to demonstrate its willingness to use nuclear weapons in its conflict with Ukraine.
The Times newspaper reported on Monday that the NATO military alliance had warned members that President Vladimir Putin was set to demonstrate his willingness to use nuclear weapons by carrying out a nuclear test on Ukraine's border.
The London-based newspaper also said Russia had moved a train thought to be linked to a unit of the defense ministry that was responsible for nuclear munitions.
When asked about the Times report, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia did not want to take part in what he cast as Western exercises in "nuclear rhetoric".
"The Western media, Western politicians and heads of state are engaging in a lot of exercises in nuclear rhetoric right now," Peskov said. "We do not want to take part in this."