Think of it like a train. A train has momentum. Even if the force being applied on the train is beginning to slow the train, the train’s momentum will carry it down the track.
Right now, Russia is headed to the brink, and has just started applying the breaks. The US is still headed in the other direction and the breaks have just been applied.
How long would it take (assuming that reverses can turn the train and push it the other way down the track), would it take before Russia reversed their direction, and overcame the US?
I submit that Russia has sucessfully stopped its progress toward the abyss and has reversed direction. America as a whole has rejected the brake pedal and is stabbing at the accelerator.