The Russian people also paid a staggering price to defeat the Nazis in the East. The Soviet post WW2 occupation of Eastern Europe was also, in part, do to the paranoia of being invaded. Hence the response to Western activities in Ukraine in the 21st Century.

Clearly the price was not staggering enough if they still had enough soldiers and material to support aforementioned puppet governments. The western world missed a huge opportunity to bleed them dry.