According to Jack Barsky, a former KGB agent and author of "Deep Undercover: My Secret Life and Tangled Alliances as a KGB Spy in America," Russian President Vladimir Putin may be feeling trapped.
Despite his public statements, Barsky said Putin can't just pretend that everything is fine in Ukraine, where his troops have so far failed to capture the capital, Kyiv.
Barsky was born Albrecht Dittrich in East Germany and was recruited by the KGB to spy on the United States during the Cold War. After the Soviet Union fell apart, he stayed in the U.S. and worked with American intelligence after being revealed as a former sleeper agent.
Barsky said that the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 was a pivotal moment for Putin, who was then a mid-level KGB operative. Putin was informed Moscow was silent as demonstrators gathered outside the building where he was stationed in Dresden, East Germany.
Putin is a Russian politician who was elected and went from being a member of the most powerful organization in East Germany, "living the good life, to being utterly powerless in maintaining that position."
That, Barsky believes, had a lasting impression on him and inspired him to rebuild - not the Soviet Union, but bigger Russia. "This is exactly what he's looking for," Barsky said.
Putin has wanted to escalate the battle in prior wars, Barsky said, and if history repeats again, he will strike more civilian targets.
"He isn't as concerned about the hardship of the Russian people. He's wreaking havoc on his own people," the former KGB agent added.
Barsky said, Putin maintains a "firm hold on authority" and he doesn't have anything to fear as long as he satisfies his inner circle - the people who are directly backing him.
While a military revolution could be a long-term possibility, Barsky added that he is quite well protected right now.
Assuming he survives this, assuming there isn't some type of coup against him, Putin will be in trouble in the long run if this continues, if more soldiers die, Barsky said.
In late 1979, Soviet troops invaded Afghanistan, deposing the Afghan leader and launching a nearly decade-long war with the mujahideen.
And, as many may recall, Afghanistan signaled the end of the Soviet Union - and Ukraine may signal the end of Putin's dictatorship, he said.
