Picture Equatorial Guinea, a 10,831 sq mi country squeezed between Cameroon and Gambon, with a population of 343,000 (1989 est) whose life expectancy is 44 years and literacy rate 37 % (1980 est).

Since gaining independence from Spain in 1968 it has had just two presidents: Francisco Nguema, who was murdered by his nephew, Teodoro Obiang in 1979, who has been president ever since.

The country was of so little interest to the USA that they closed their embassy there in the 80s. Since then it has had the distinction of being named in the same breath as Iraq and North Korea for being run by an evil dictator. True, it has a very poor human rights record, and the upright and righteous, God-fearing people of the US cannot be expected to be in bed with some uncivilised tribal folks in central Africa.

But now huge oil reserves have been discovered offshore, and those same Americans have changed their minds about the Equatorial Guineans and are opening their embassy up again. Pure coincidence, wouldn't you say?

(Item on BBC' s "World Tonight", 12th March).