Are We Accepting Putin's Paranoia About Invasion as Geo Strategic Reality?

Russia's paranoia is about being invaded. And we don't seriously think that the West wants to invade Russia. But are we not just accepting Putin's paranoia or the Russian elites paranoia about invasion as geo strategic reality? That was their view. The question is, and this gets to the second point, the question is, how do you deal with them given that they view NATO expansion into Ukraine as a mortal threat?"