Reminds me of Asimov's "Foundation" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foundation_series https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foundation_series). The (first) Foundation w

Reminds me of Asimov's "Foundation" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foundation_series https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foundation_series). The (first) Foundation was set up on a small, insignificant planet, surrounded by belligerent powers. Its continued existence was made possible only by playing those powers off against one another. And the Foundation itself: highly advanced technology that those very powers came to rely on...