That is not true. Results of a referendum held before dismantling the USSR were that majority of the people were in favor of preservation of the Union. Elites decided to dismantle it instead.
About the small republics - well, they cannot forgive us for bringing them out of the medieval state and into the modern world and spit bile towards former USSR and modern Russia any time they can, especially Finland and the Baltic states. But now that the USSR is gone, Latvia and Lithuania, who had the best living conditions out of all of the Soviet block, are rapidly dying out, ironic.
Best living conditions in USSR era had ....Crimea after 1945 th...
It was something like Vegas and Canary icelands for USSR rich and upper middle class...
Crimea had a lot of military installations and huge funding cos this and was Mecca for USSR tourists to get there....
In Crimea if you had worked in proper place, even as waiter you might had easy to get salary plus not rarely also premials and overtime well paid + on top of this 2nd salary as tips easy peasy.
If you had opted additionally to earn something from real black market options...then in top of this 3 rd or even 4 th salary additionally.
Also a lot of opportunties even to get 2 legal jobs and to work in these with a glance...
I do know ppl who had lived in Crimea in USSR times... in person not just cos some internet...
I even had been in Crimea ...in Ukr era...before this war ofc..
After 1992 th rich and upper middle class in former USSR, incl both Ykr and Ruzzia ...had prefered to choice Cyprus, Turkey, Greece, Switzerland, Israel, Italy, Spain, Monaco etc...for sanatoriums and parties, entertainment and pleasure....
Crimea from pearl and dream had turned into poverty hole with low salaries and huge prices....
You are rude and spreading Kremlin's propaganda because this is your job to be done here....