LONDON: British Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab described talk of an increased threat of Russia using nuclear weapons in its invasion of Ukraine as rhetoric and brinkmanship.

"I think its rhetoric and brinkmanship," he told Sky News when asked about a possible nuclear escalation by the Kremlin.

"(Putin's) got a track record as long as anyone's arm of misinformation and propaganda ... this is a distraction from what the real issues are at hand - which is that it's an illegal invasion and it is not going according to plan."