Former MI6 spy Christopher Steele, who has assembled a controversial case, breaks silence to criticize Trump

The former British intelligence officer who wrote the explosive case, referring to links between Donald Trump's campaign and Russian officials, broke an 18-month silence to criticize the US president's leadership, but not by his name.

After being listed with Vanity Fair magazine after being included in the 2018 list of new institutions, Christopher Steele called on the media to "voice uncomfortable truths in power" and hold the US government accountable.

In a letter to Editor-in-Chief Radhika Jones, he said, "In these strange and troubling times, it is difficult to say unpleasant truths to power, but I believe we all have a duty to do so. who are on your list, and if not, who have had the courage to speak during the past year, often at great expense.

"At a time when governance is so distorted and one-sided, as I currently believe in the United States, the media have a key role to play in empowering it," he added.

AP

The 35-page document, known as the "Steele Folder," is a collection of memos about raw intelligence.

The case includes allegations that the president has been cooperating with Russia for years and that the Russians have held compromising documents against him that could subject him to blackmail.

The record contains unverified claims that the president, then a reality TV star, allegedly had sex with prostitutes during a trip to Moscow in 2013.

Trump vehemently and repeatedly denied all the requests contained in the record, calling it "dummy and corrupted record" and calling Steele "Lowlife."

Steele was a long-time intelligence officer with the British Secret Intelligence Service, known as MI6, and the British equivalent of the CIA, where he headed Russia's office.

Victoria Jones / PA via AP / FILE

He retired from the service in 2009 to start his own private intelligence company, Orbis Business Intelligence.

In 2016, he was hired by the American firm Fusion GPS to investigate the alleged links between the Trump campaign and Moscow.