A Brief Overview of the Star Trek Universe Triple Balance: Alpha Quadrant Delta Quadrant and the Borg Divine Interventions The Gamma Quadrant and Dominion Triple Balance: Alpha Quadrant In most of Star Trek, three powers have always come to the fore - the diverse Federation, the militaristic Klingon Empire, and the isolationist Romulans. The expansion of the Klingon Empire and rapid technological advancement of the Romulan Empire have both been continual concerns for the Federation; however, hostility has not been constant between the three powers. Conflict began with the incidents that led to the formation of the Federation and the Romulan Neutral Zone in 2160, with the Federation being founded to combat and suppress the Romulans, containing them within the Neutral Zone. By the beginning of the 23rd century, the Federation and the Klingon Empire were at loggerheads, and remained at war until the Organian treaty. Open warfare was replaced by Klingon support of the newly expansionist Romulans, who entered a militaristic phase. Small incidents between the Federation and Romulan Empire continued for roughly a half century in spite of a three-way peace treaty (Khitomer accords of 2293), eventually leading to a serious Romulan attack on the Federation in 2318. Rather than enter another isolationist phase, the Romulans re-grouped and started a war with the Klingon Empire in 2346, leading to a bitter conflict between the two powers. Delta Quadrant and the Borg One of the most dominant powers in the Star Trek universe are the Borg. A single Borg ship constitutes an invasion; conventional civilizations in the Delta Quadrant exists mainly through the mercy or ignorance of the Borg (or the intervention of quasi-divine figures). The Borg have - or had - one of the most highly developed galactic transit systems in their transwarp highways. Between this system and their unusually large fleet, the Borg are the only true superpower on the scale of the galaxy; the Borg have influence everywhere. They are also uniquely hostile to all other factions; recent defeats at the hands of the Federation have given them systemic difficulties out of proportion to the Federation's size, but the Borg will likely remain the only true conventional superpower in the galaxy for quite some time. Divine Interventions One situation that occurs fairly frequently in Star Trek is the intervention of quasi-divine, highly advanced beings. We can point to several incidents of great importance. First, the Organians created and enforced a treaty that stopped the Federation-Klingon war in its tracks. The two powers subsequently became allies, warring only briefly. Alternate histories in time travel episodes highlight how critical it was for both the Klingon Empire and the Federation. Second, Q initiated contact between the Borg and the Federation, supposedly to give the Federation fair warning of what they would have to eventually face. The Federation's subsequent near-death experiences at the hands of the Borg in "Best of Both Worlds" and STVIII suggest this was another critical intervention. Third, the Caretaker pulled Voyager into the Delta Quadrant. Voyager's journey through the Delta Quadrant was highly influential on local and galactic politics. Fourth, the pagh wraiths had critical influence on the course and conclusion of the Dominion War. Put together, these constitute a pattern of quasi-divine intervention in Trek politics. The course of Trek history has many guiding hands. The Gamma Quadrant and Dominion	Wikipedia A category containing articles about politics in Star Trek. Memory Alpha Government and politics in Star Trek. Brave New World A critical essay about the UFP. Star Trek and the Great Utopian Sellout Another critical essay.