Senior Advisor Andrew Weiss spoke with NPR on his new book Accidental Czar: The Life and Lies of Vladimir Putin, which takes a look at Putin's rise to power. 

"The most important thing that Putin experienced in East Germany was the spontaneous unraveling of the German Democratic Republic, the GDR. He saw what happens when people take responsibility for their own freedom and their destiny. And it's the fear of that kind of situation that animates pretty much, I think, Putin's most deepest, darkest fears about the United States and what the ultimate agenda for the United States is with regard to Russia." 

Listen to the full interview below.