A mushroom cloud rises with ships below during Operation Crossroads nuclear weapons test on Bikini Atoll, Marshall Islands in this 1946 file handout provided by the U.S. Library of Congress.

MOSCOW, May 30 (Xinhua) -- The Russian Foreign Ministry on Thursday denied the accusation of a top U.S. defense official that Russia is "probably" conducting low-yield nuclear tests.

The allegation of Robert Ashley, the director of the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, on Wednesday was "a crude provocation," which was "absolutely groundless" and aimed at tarnishing the reputation of Russia, the ministry said in a statement.

It said that Russia strictly adheres to the multilateral Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty and has stopped nuclear testing since 1991 in compliance with the pact.

The ministry said that the United States possibly used the attacks against Russia to divert international attention and cover up its own preparations for the resumption of full-scale nuke tests.

"U.S. political and military leaders should remember that a return to the era of nuclear testing is fraught with dire consequences for global stability," the Russian statement read.