the forming of those relationships, vision to form a tax haven and ability to stay in power by managing relationships between foreign powers to not experience a 'coup' is precisely leadership
It's leadership depending on the benevolence of outside factors, which is based on their strategic interests and what they want from you.
Doesn't work if you're just a land with resources to plunder and they have no interests in seeing you thrive, but the contrary.
Works even less if you have other ideas about your governance, trade, and allies that suit you, to what powerful countries taking an interest in your area want you to have because it suits them.
But if you don't have resources for them to covet, your existence fits a purpose in their plans, and you don't get too independent but always keep their preferences in mind, yeah, you can then apply leadership to make things better.
It's just leadership in much easier circumstances than elsewhere.
