Cold War Vibrations

 Did Turkey consider invading and occupying Greece after World War II?

No. The British had a strong presence in Greece that they maintained from late 1944 to 1947 as a consequence of the Greek Civil War that followed the withdrawal of Axis forces from the country. The rebel ELAS troops (the military wing of the Communists National Liberation Front - EAM) had backing from Tito’s Yugoslavia and were extremely battle hardened. Although they stood in opposition to the Greek government, a Turkish invasion would not be tolerated by all sides. After 1947, the Greek government was further strengthened militarily by equipment and supplies coming from the United States as part of the Truman Doctrine. The Greek Civil War itself would last until 1949.

Worth noting is that in 1945 Turkey had to tread very carefully as her relationship with the Soviet Union was strained as a result of the Turkish straits crisis. It was this crisis that would encourage Turkey to eventually join NATO.

Why didn't Joseph Stalin suffer a fate similar to Benito Mussolini or Nicolae Ceaușescu?

He died in 1953 at a time when the Soviet Union was on the upswing in terms of international power. It was also basking in the glory of victory in WWII with the nation having amassed a huge sphere of influence in Eastern Europe. Neither Mussolini nor Ceaușescu had such a legacy to protect them (whether it was justified in the case of Stalin is another question altogether).

In addition both Stalin’s cult of personality and his suppression of opposition voices was far more widespread and effective than that of the other two. He knew how to play the ruthlessness card very well and did so frequently.

Did Mao Zedong have any dangerous aspects to his personality?

He had several. Like most dictators he likely had strong psychopathic traits that pandered to a sense of narcissism. You don’t carry out the destructive and genocidal policies of the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution without a full and unquestioned sense of your own moral superiority and the disdain of the other. The fact that he is lauded by so many is a classic case of using the cult of personality to pull the wool over people’s eyes.

Why didn't any country except Russia have an empire after World War II?

The question is based on a false assumption. Britain, France, Belgium, Portugal and the Netherlands still had empires after WWII. However over the next three decades following the war these would be drastically reduced in size as the cost of administration (both economically and militarily) would prove to be burdensome for the respective powers. Soviet Hegemony over its included states and satellite nations would continue for the duration of the Cold War (1945–1991). However with the demise of its economy and a weakening military grip on its holdings this too would fall by the wayside.

How long does it take for a rising power to become a super power in history?

Super power status is a rarity. The US and the Soviet Union reached the status after WWII and China may still do so in the future. In the 19th century one could argue that Britain and to a lesser extent the French scaled the height but in reality virtually every rising power never reaches the summit. Balance of power checks, internal conflict and the twists and turns of history take care of this. For a nation to reach superpower status many ducks have to line up in a row nothing is predetermined based on the original trajectory of growth.