Obit -- Markus Wolf, head of Stasi counter-intel [audio 3min @11:02]

Back in the days of the Cold War between East and West, "Markus Wolf" was a name to be feared. As head of East Germany's dreaded Stasi counter-intelligence unit, Herr Wolf was able to steal secrets and embarrass governments with startling ease. At one point, the U.S. even labelled him a terrorist -- yet was still rumoured to have consulted Wolf about how it should run its own anti-terrorist activities. Of course, Wolf was a dyed-in-the-wool Communist. And as such, he held firmly to the official party line that religion was indeed an opiate for the masses. But as a spy, he also recognized that to dismiss religion would be political suicide. Now Markus Wolf has died in Berlin, at age 83. On October 14, 1998, Mr. Wolf spoke to "As It Happens" host Mary Lou Finlay. He told her how he planted a spy in the very heart of Catholicism -- right inside the Vatican -- for more than 20 years. Here's an excerpt from that interview, for the record.