This was definitely a tradecraft code word when two dudes passed a briefcase between each other in a cold park one day in Moscow.

Heavy, heavy pronunciation going on to near comical effect.

Psst! Tovarisch! Next meeting at 11:00 p.m. Tuesday under the bridge just after Gorky Prospekt! Wear a grey checked coat, with a copy of Pravda under your arm. Da?

Oops, too many spy novels plus a bad sense of humour ... ;)

Or maybe, too many bad spy novels :)