>what difference does their location make?

Well...

The first thing that made me go "hmm..." was the fact that the random servers I see whenever I connect are always in handful of countries (US, Germany, France). I would have expected something more geographically distributed, not just in Five Eyes+ countries (although one could retort that hoenypots are easier to install and maintain in low-cost countries, like the Philippines or Moldova)

The second thing, as stated, was the perceived discrepancy between the high cost (physical and emotional) of running a server in a country involved in a very distructive war.

So, as you can see, I'm - well, let's avoid "paranoid" - suspicious all over board.