Putin warns West not to cross Russia's "red line" amid standoff over Ukraine and Alexey Navalny

Moscow — President Vladimir Putin warned the West not to cross "a red line with Russia" on Wednesday as he gave his annual state of the nation address. It was one of Putin's few references to the standoff between Russia and the West over the escalating conflict in eastern Ukraine, and his government's treatment of jailed opposition leader Alexey Navalny.

As he spoke, people were being detained across the country as mass protests called by Navalny's allies slowly ramped up. Russia ordered 10 U.S. Embassy staffers in Moscow to pack their bags to leave the country, meanwhile, as relations between Putin's government and the U.S. and Europe continued to sour. The Russian Foreign Ministry summoned the senior U.S. embassy official on Wednesday and handed him a note saying the 10 employees "were ordered to leave the territory of our country by the end of the day on May 21." The expulsions were announced a day after the American ambassador in Russia said he was returning to Washington for "consultations," days after the Kremlin suggested he do so.