Although the Soviet Union, now the Russian Federation, has never sent an astronaut to the Moon, they still helped pave the way for human space exploration.
It is the disintegration of the U.S.S.R. that President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia says he wants to remedy by waging war against Ukraine; it is the legacy of Moscow’s dominance that Ukrainians hope to free themselves of by defeating Moscow.
The cult of Stalin personality was already debunked, the first man had just flown to space and the country was in the midst of the Khrushchev Thaw with hopes of a new, better life.