Donald Trump said Russia has never tried to use leverage over him following unverified dossier

In a string of tweets ahead of a press conference later today, Mr Trump said Russia has “never tried to use leverage” over him and he has “no deals, no loans, no nothing” with the country.

He asked “Are we living in Nazi Germany” and slammed “crooked opponents” for trying to belittle him with “fake news”.

Earlier, President Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the dossier, which claimed Trump had engaged in lewd sexual acts in Moscow, was “complete fabrication and utter nonsense.”

“This is an evident attempt to harm our bilateral ties,” he said. “The Kremlin does not engage in collecting compromising information.”

Russia just said the unverified report paid for by political opponents is "A COMPLETE AND TOTAL FABRICATION, UTTER NONSENSE." Very unfair!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 11, 2017

Russia has never tried to use leverage over me. I HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH RUSSIA - NO DEALS, NO LOANS, NO NOTHING!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 11, 2017

Intelligence agencies should never have allowed this fake news to "leak" into the public. One last shot at me.Are we living in Nazi Germany?

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 11, 2017

On Tuesday, Buzzfeed news published a dossier that been circulating in government and media circles for weeks that contained a number of unsubstantiated claims about Mr Trump.

The document which is purportedly from a British intelligence official, states Russia had been cultivating and supporting Trump for at least five years and that he had been “compromised ” through his activities in Moscow “sufficiently to be able to blackmail him”.

It said Russian Secret Service initiatives to exploit Trump’s sexual desires had “borne fruit” and that compromising material had been found about him in the presidential suite of the Ritz Carlton Hotel where the Obama’s had stayed including “defiling the bed” with prostitutes used to perform “golden showers”.

It also contains information about Russian cyberhacking and alleged meetings carried out by Trump’s adviser Carter Page in Moscow. Mr Peskov, was named as the owner of a similar dossier on Hillary Clinton that had been ordered directly by Putin.

The President-elect denied the report as “FAKE NEWS — A TOTAL POLITICAL WITCH HUNT!”

FAKE NEWS - A TOTAL POLITICAL WITCH HUNT!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 11, 2017

Mr Peskov said it should be treated with “humour” but that there was a sad side that could harm relations between the countries.

“There are people who are whipping up this frenzy, who are doing their best to keep this witch hunt going,” he said.

President Trump is due to hold his first press conference in five months on Wednesday.