"Even after the West began to loosen restrictions on research, and Gorbachev initiated a so-called policy of "glasnost" the gap between the Soviet Union and the West accelerated, because the base of any scientific, intellectual progress had been effectively destroyed by five+ decades of Stalinism."
Actually, it seems to me that the US has been surprised by the effectiveness of some Soviet weapons that have appeared in recent years. They seem to be copying some of the stuff that stolen pretty well---and even adding some clever twists sometimes. I don't know weaponry well so I'll admit I can't come up with any specific examples. Perhaps I can be commented on by others.