Yes except Russians run the fucking USSR. What is your point? I don't care what you call it. For all practical purposes it was a Russian Empire.
Nope. It was not. If that was the case, then why Crimea was separated from the Russian SSR in 1954, and gifted to the Ukrainian SSR? At that time, the peninsula was overwhelmingly populated by the ethnic Russians.
In order to Crimea was conditions of life for the Crimea joined to Ukraine. Ukraine dug a channel and put fresh water in the Crimea. Additionally, the supply of the Crimea more convenient to do it through Ukraine.