Sentence:  In that context Scotland's fate is a modest element, a symptom of wider fragmentation of the current global order, a footnote to the fall of empire and the Berlin Wall, important to us and punchdrunk neighbours like France and Italy, a mere curiosity to emerging <WSD>titans</WSD> like Brazil. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  Something or someone of very large stature, greatness, or godliness.