MOSCOW (AFP) - A top Russian official on Tuesday accused the US administration of President Barack Obama of intensifying missile defence plans and said Russia saw no basis for big cuts in its nuclear arsenal. In an interview with Interfax news agency, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov revived threats to site Iskander strategic missiles in the Kaliningrad exclave near Poland if Washingtons missile shield plans in Europe went ahead. The Americans have not reviewed their plans and I dont think this can happen. On the contrary, we see an intensification of work in the area of missile defence, including within the format of Nato, he said. Regarding Moscows possible deployment of missiles to Kaliningrad, a territory surrounded by European Union and Nato states, he said: No one has changed this position.... If there is no missile shield, there wont be any Iskanders. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev first voiced the threat to place the short-range ballistic missiles in Kaliningrad, but later pulled back amid signs of warming ties. The Russian comments heighten tensions just as the two sides are due to sit down for talks in Rome on Friday on creating a successor treaty to a Soviet-era arms-control accord, the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START). Ryabkov said he saw little likelihood of radical cuts under current circumstances. Conditions are not ripe and there is no basis today to consider radical reductions of Russias strategic weapons, he said. The US missile shield plans involve placing a radar in the Czech Republic and interceptor missiles in Poland. Washington has portrayed them as a defence against rogue states such as Iran rather than against Russias huge arsenal. In Brussels, a Nato spokeswoman said Russia pulled out Tuesday of a high-level meeting next month with top Nato brass but made no complaint about war games the alliance will hold in Georgia. At an informal meeting of military officers in Brussels, Russias representative told his Nato counterparts that Moscow prefers to work towards a thaw in their ties on a political rather than military track. The Russian representative said that at this stage the Russian preference would be to restart the re-engagement with Nato in the political sphere, Nato deputy spokesperson Carmen Romero said. There was no question of any link to the (military) exercise, she said.