As their only consistent national identity revolves around being counter to the west, there was actually a period of time where the Soviet Union fell and russia decriminalized homosexuality in 1991, decriminalized homosexual relationships in 1993, and in 1997 allowed transpeople to officially register as the gender which they identified with.

This coincided with the period of time when the US was struggling with gays in the military, the ramifications of the AIDS crisis from the 1980’s, and Focus on the Family was trying to re-criminalize homosexuality in America.

As the west grew stronger, and gay acceptance became a significant part of western identity, russia decided that maybe the gays didn’t need protecting after all