This probably is not an answer to your question, but I am posting this because this thread reminded me of the comic book/graphic novel
Watchmen.
In Chapter 4 of the story, the "Introduction" to a certain book was printed on the final four pages of the chapter. The book was called "Dr. Manhattan: Super-Powers and the Superpowers," written by Professor Milton Glass. In the Introduction, Prof. Glass discussed whether or not Dr. Manhattan was truly going to be an effective deterrent to the Soviet Union initiating WW3 - a global thermonuclear war that would end life on Earth. Here is part of what it says:
To understand the Russian attitude to the possibility of a third world war one must first understand their attitude to the second. In WWII, none of the allied powers fought to bitterly or sustained such losses as did the Russians. It was Hitler's lack of success in his assault upon the Soviet heartland that assured his eventual defeat, and though it was paid for mostly by Soviet lives, the entire world reaped the benefits. In time, the Russian contribution to the war effort has been downplayed and dismissed -- most noticeably as our political differences became wider -- as we glorified our own contributions while forgetting that of our estranged former allies. The Russians, however, have not forgotten. There are still those who remember the horror of a war fought on their soil, and almost certainly there are members of the Politburo in that category. From my reading of various pronouncements made by the Russian high council over the years, I am convinced that they will never again permit their nation to be threatened in a similar manner, no matter what the cost.
