Russia is a completely different country now to what it was in the 1990s.
You can say a lot of things about Putin, but the country is far more modern and the living standard of the average Russian is far higher than it was at it's nadir during the US-imposed economic reordering of the 1990s. He hasn't stopped corruption, and he's obviously incredibly corrupt himself, but he has made oligarchs pay tax and used it to fund domestic programmes.
This is a useful lens to view the current US - Russian relations too. Most of the current Russian administration are haunted by their experiences during the 90s and are motivated to never again be in a position where the US can impose terms, ignore them, or treat them as a joke. Putin's domestic policies have won him a lot of support in the country, and the 'optics' of being seen publicly to face off against the west and not back down is, I think, a lot more important that a lot of western observers realise because of the country's recent history.
...Obviously none of this should be construed as a justification for Russian military aggression.
