U.S. Senator Slams Putin, Warns Of Islamic State

Russian President Vladimir Putin always finds a pretext for his actions against neighboring countries, according to U.S. Senator Roger Wicker (Republican-Mississippi), who is also co-chair of the U.S. Helsinki Commission. In an interview with RFE/RL in Prague, he said Putin had used excuses to justify the "outrage that he's been perpetrating" in Ukraine, as well as his actions in South Ossetia, one of two breakaway regions of Georgia where Russia has intervened militarily on the side of separatists. Wicker also warned of the threat posed by Islamic State militants.