According to Anatoliy Golitstn, a KGB defector, that was exactly the plan. A false liberalization in the Soviet Union while the underground soviet system remains in place, later to re-emerge. Interesting you used the phrase "same old same old," Golitsyn's book was titled "New Lies for Old."
Which makes Germany completely unreliable as an ally. The East German military was integrated into the German armed forces after reunification, and most of its leadership were and remain pro-Russian toadies.