NATO and its system of related organizations is another great example. Built to defend against the USSR, when the USSR fell it made sure to repeatedly provoke Russia so that the threat from the east would be preserved.
No he hasn't, he thinks the Soviet Union was a disaster! Putin has always been very clear about his motivations, which he has expounded upon in countless lengthy interviews and speeches. For example, his July 2021 ramblings: https://www.prlib.ru/en/article-vladimir-putin-historical-un...
