HN uses the article title for the most part. And the article itself is very clearly talking about the Soviet era, where "Russia" meant both the specific country Russia and the USSR as a whole. Just as how in the 19th century, "England" meant the specific country England and also Great Britain/British Empire.
Neither the photos nor the copy suggest the topic is modern Russia.
Yes, but with explicit exceptions for misleading titles and linkbait (see https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html), both of which were the case here. So harryjo was right and we've changed the title. If anyone wants to suggest a better one, we can change it again.
Neither the photos nor the copy suggest the topic is modern Russia.