Putin is a predator. I am watching “The Empress” on Netflix about the Hapsburg empire and Russia wanted to expand then. Russia was a dark evil then. And it has been ever thus. Since when was Russia ever light and clean? What good has Russia ever brought to civilization? From Ivan the terrible forward. Except for Matrushka dolls and piroshki that my Russian grandmother used to make, Russian contribution to civilization involves multiple nicknames, beautiful ballet and great capacity for suffering.
One might study history and see that Russia has saved western civilization several times: stopping the Mongol Horde and establishing a west Euro/Asian bulwark for Christianity, and later, as an ally of western civilization, defeating the Aryan nazis on the eastern front at the cost of over 20 million lives.
Regarding the latter, perhaps their distrust and paranoia can be explained by the fact that many of the bellicose european political and military leaders today calling to literally break up and destroy Russia are the grandchildren and great grandchildren of Aryan nazis and their collaborators.
Russia has had and still have, evil politicians but the Russian people aren’t evil, except those that knowingly support evil. As for what they given the world.. how about Tchaikovsky. Or Tolstoy.