The Russians are the only other nation to mount a very successful and complex space programme. We should not underestimate their abilities.
Someone said that Russia is never as weak as She seems or as strong as She seems
Well, there is merit to what you say. However, the full story of the Soviet space program has yet to be written I think. While our program was based upon technology, theirs was based upon brute force, huge rockets, low technology, and I suspect if the truth were known, at considerable loss of life. Also, keep in mind that the Soviets were never able to put people on the moon - had to abandon this endeavor much to their chagrin...