Granted WW-II is the most common example of Russia saving the world from anything, that isn't what I had in mind with the OP. What I DID have in mind was Putin turning Russia's computer hackers loose on that East Anglia Climate Unit which in fact did have the effect of bringing the global-warming lunatics into widespread disrepute and stopping any chance they might have had at shutting down most of the world's economies for the glory of Gaea, as they would like to do.
Where we might be right now other than for that action would probably be nobody's idea of fun. Our own pols were either for greenism or totally cowed by it, Putin is the only guy who stood up to it.