US President Donald Trump has directed the Justice Department to immediately declassify more information related to the investigation into possible election meddling by Russia.
Trump's demands mark his latest effort to turn up the heat on the Justice Department, whom he and his Republican allies have accused of running a tainted probe into Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election.
Among the documents Trump ordered the Justice Department and the director of national intelligence to make public are 20 additional pages of FBI surveillance warrant applications related to his former campaign adviser Carter Page.
Trump also ordered the release of FBI interview reports with Justice Department official Bruce Ohr related to the Russia probe, and FBI interview reports related to the Page surveillance warrant applications, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said in a statement.
Finally, Trump directed the Justice Department to release, without redactions, text messages relating to the Russia probe from former FBI Director James Comey, former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe and other officials, including FBI agent Peter Strzok.
Trump fired Comey in May 2017, originally citing the Russia probe, and then saying that the firing was not "because of the phony Russia investigation."
McCabe was fired in March by Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Strzok was also recently fired, and has been criticised for sending texts disparaging Trump as a presidential candidate.
Democrats say that Trump and his allies are politicising a law enforcement investigation in order to protect the White House.
Representative Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the House of Representatives Intelligence Committee, sharply criticised Trump.
"President Trump, in a clear abuse of power, has decided to intervene in a pending law enforcement investigation by ordering the selective release of materials he believes are helpful to his defence team and thinks will advance a false narrative," Schiff said.
The pages that Trump ordered declassified concern Page's links to the Russian government and alleged ties to Russia's intelligence services, including his 2004-2007 residency in Russia, where he began business dealings with state-owned Gazprom.
Page has denied that he conspired with Russia, and has not been charged with wrongdoing.
They also appear to concern a dossier of unverified information on Russian financial and personal links to Trump and his associates that was compiled by former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele.
Trump has denied colluding with Russia and Russia has denied meddling in the 2016 election, though major US intelligence agencies agree that Russia interfered.
