The likelihood of a nuclear war has increased, according to a senior Russian security official, who also denounced a German minister for threatening Russian leader Vladimir Putin with arrest.

Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy secretary of the Russian Security Council, issued a warning on Thursday, saying that such a move would amount to a declaration of war and result in a strike by Moscow against Germany.

According to Medvedev, ties between Moscow and the West are at an all-time low.

When asked by Russian journalists if the risk of a nuclear war had diminished, Medvedev replied, “No, it hasn’t decreased. It has grown. Every day when they provide Ukraine with foreign weapons brings the nuclear apocalypse closer.”