LONDON -- One hundred and fifty years ago, the Great Game was in full swing. The game was conducted between two main players, the colossal and ever-expanding Russian Empire and the mighty British Empire, then approaching its zenith. Persia, Turkey, Afghanistan and India were all pawns on the game board.
The prize for Russia was access to the warm-water ports of the Mediterranean, the Gulf and the Indian Ocean. The British goal was to keep Russian influence and power from spreading south, to protect the sea routes to India and to maintain British naval supremacy worldwide.
Empires pass away and old ambitions are forgotten. Yet by an extraordinary twist of events, it looks as though a new version of the Great Game is becoming the focal point of geopolitical events.