Putin threatens foreign countries must not cross the “red lines” set by Russia

The Russian Foreign Ministry announced on Wednesday that the ten US diplomats who were to be expelled in response to the expulsion of diplomats in Washington must leave Russian territory before May 21.

A senior US embassy official was summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry, where he was handed a note stating that “ten embassy employees are not wanted” and they “must leave our lands before May 21,” according to a statement issued by the Russian Ministry.

Moscow said that “this measure constitutes a response (according to the principle of) reciprocity, to the hostilities of the American side against a number of employees of the Russian Embassy in Washington and the Russian Consulate General in New York,” warning that “other steps will follow”.

This came as Russian President Vladimir Putin warned the West on Wednesday, not to cross the “red lines” of Russia, saying that Moscow would respond quickly and harshly to any foreign provocations that would make those who embark on it regret their actions.

Putin’s comments come at a time when relations with the United States and Europe are under severe tension due to Ukraine and the health of imprisoned dissident Alexei Navalny.

“We want good relations… and we don’t really want to burn bridges,” Putin said in his annual State of the Union address to the two houses of parliament.

“But if someone misinterpreted our good intentions as indifference or weakness and intends to burn or blow up these bridges, then they should know that Russia’s response will be… swift and harsh,” he added.

He said that Russia will determine its red lines on each issue separately.

These statements were the most prominent of the 78-minute speech, which focused mostly on Russia’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic and the economic difficulties it caused.

The past few weeks have witnessed an escalation in the confrontation between Russia and Western countries, which say Moscow is massing tens of thousands of soldiers near Ukraine.

In his annual State of the Union address to senior officials and lawmakers from both houses of parliament, Putin said that Moscow had done everything it could for good relations with other countries and that he hoped a foreign country would not cross the “red lines” set by Moscow.

The Russian President also urged his citizens to get a vaccine against the Coronavirus, and stressed that this is the only way for the country to overcome this health crisis.

He said: “This is the only way to beat the disease.

There is no other way… Please vaccinate”.

Almost everyone did not wear masks, although the measures in place in Russia require them to be worn at such mass events in closed places.

Putin, 68, said that he received the second dose of the vaccine last week.

So far, relatively few individuals have been vaccinated in the vast country of about 146 million people.

According to the latest official data, protection against the virus was offered to just over 5%.