It's not entirely a US based fiction. In some areas the question was between choosing a western US led order or the USSR based one. Not everywhere, of course.

It's not entirely a US based fiction. In some areas the question was between choosing a western US led order or the USSR based one. Not everywhere, of course. US is of course a selfish actor. But it's not black and white, and while US has never been "the good guy" they are still a stabilizing force that for most parts promotes rule based order. Yes, they assault sovereign states and all that, I'm not disagreeing US has pathologies to bear. But in some regions it's influence benefits the local population (even though the goal is not directly to help anyone but to promote a specific selfish policy). On the Eurasian theater Russia is not a neglible actor. Given it is being lead by a mafia more or less, in regional matters Russia is still a looming threat (ahem, Ukraine, ahem). As a citizen of country which shares a very long land border with Russia (Finland), and given the realpolitik fact small nations are at the mercy of larger powers, I much prefer a situation where US can politically and financially influence events in my local vicinity to a one where Russia would be the larger presence. If I was for example Vietnamese I might hold quite different views. Or if I lived in an area that was a theater of conflict for drone strikes and my family suddenly died as collateral damage.