Putin courts Georgia, accuses West of Cold War-style 'containment'

SOCHI, Russia (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin held out the prospect of better relations to Russia's 2008 war foe Georgia on Monday but had tougher words for the West, saying criticism of the Sochi Olympics was part of a Cold War-style "containment" effort.

Putin used a televised meeting in Sochi to court Georgia, which is trying to balance pro-Western policies with a cautious warming toward Moscow, and to dismiss Western criticism of the Olympics as a doomed attempt to hold his country back.