East Germany

Germany kicks off celebrations Friday marking the 25th anniversary of the epochal fall of the Berlin Wall, set to culminate with rock stars and veteran freedom activists joining a millions-strong crowd.
      

Swept along by the excitement as the Berlin Wall was torn down, former top Soviet officials now say, 25 years on, they feel stabbed in the back by the West.
      
Igor Maximychev watched with trepidation from the Soviet embassy in Berlin as East Germans streamed towards the Wall the night it came down.