That was because Germany wanted Russia's withdrawal from WW1 - which it did.
Marx's communism has been born in Europe.
But they were sane enough to not try to implement it in practice.
At least not in a way Lenin, Stalin & Co. did.
USA and USSR used to support different sides in many conflicts.
USSR supported North Korea.
USA supported South Korea.
Which one you rather be living in?
The same with East and West Germany - they had to build a wall and put armed guards on it to keep people from escaping to the West.
if you include the Baltic states, then it's a different story, but they were technically part of the USSR.
If someone stole your car - is it his now or still yours?
yet in South Korea there are a number of US bases
Of course there are - these nutjobs in the north must be kept in check.

But still today, there are more American troops stationed in Western Europe, than the USSR ever had in Eastern Europe!
Almost all Western Europe is also part of NATO - I don't see anything wrong that US troops are there - they are in the same military alliance after all...

Warsaw Pact governments did a good job of oppressing their people themselves - large USSR military presence was not necessary.
Ruthless, uncaring and incredibly unfair treatment of good people who had done absolutely nothing to deserve it.
That's because in the USSR people and their lives had little to no value...
State's needs were before people's needs - peope were just expendable crap - that was partially the reason why USSR WW2 casualties were so high.
Most of the countries that you are referring to were always rather poor, invaded by first one power then another. Only a few of them ever had power or wealth that was their own.
In most of Eastern Europe quality of life was higher than in the USSR - they did not bring "culture and enlightement" to countries they invaded.
Plus I genuinely do think there were some good sides to the USSR.
And then come bastards like me and Eric who destroy your overidealized view of the USSR.
These "good sides" were the same things that any decent country is providing to their people right now - education, healthcare, infrastructure building, etc.
Nothing really special.
I'm doing really fine living in exUSSR country - we have not resorted to cannibalism or something like that after USSR dissolution - government is providing its services, schools are working, infrastructure is being built and maintained, etc...
The bad sides of te USSR however outweight the good sides by orders of magnitude.
Lack of basic human rights, oppression and persecutions by the state, etc...