Shockingly similar to real life as well.
An established, well-rooted but also horrobly compromised superpower is made to act as an aggressor in order to advance an elite minority lest they either kill or scandalise said superpowers leadership.
No rhyme nor reason, just pure machination and suffering.
Humiliation is worse than death for some of thr species.
They're more likely to denounce Trump than elect his next incarnation the moment they get to do so.
Idolatry tends to do that.