The chorus of derision at the accusations that Russia has cultivated Donald Trump as an asset and that it has compromising material on him is growing louder in Moscow.

The idea that America’s president-elect is a potential patsy at the mercy of Vladimir Putin is being treated with scorn. Instead it is being seen as a conspiracy by his opponents to stymie his attempt to improve bilateral relations.

“If there was at least the smallest proof it would have already been published in all the media in the USA. The outgoing Obama administration is trying to do everything to marginalise Russia before it leaves,” said the State Duma Chairman of the Committee on International affairs Leonid Slutskiy.

This – not anonymous CIA leaks and evidence-free, conclusory reports – is the right way to determine if these claims are accurate: https://t.co/OtuRRW7ibC— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) January 12, 2017

Russian politicians are stunned by the political fighting which has raged on after the elections, but most agree the consequences for Donald Trump will be serious. Some think it is only the first of many fake news stories about him to come.

“Fights are still going on, their goal may not be to get rid of the president, even though I think that the impeachment option is seriously being considered, and impeachment will be attempted. At the very least they are trying to make Trump’s life and work as difficult as they can. In Russia this situation is seen as proof of a very serious political crisis in the USA,” said the Editor of Russia in Global Affairs Fyodor Lukyanov, who is also the chairman of the non-governmental Council on Foreign and Defense Policy.

“The opinion of the Russian political elite is pretty uniform, that the published material on Donald Trump is nothing but pulp fiction, that’s how it was described by Vladimir Putin’s press secretary. And during the cold first days of the new year many hope the ice in
Russian-US relations in 2017 will start to melt,” reports euronews’ Galina Polonskaya from Moscow.