Secretary of State Hillary Clinton meets with Russia’s Foreign Minister to discuss Iran’s nuclear program. A senior Russian official says that further sanctions against Iran would be “counterproductive,” and Clinton agrees that “we are not at that point yet.”

Russia and China agree to a framework for the export of Russian oil and gas supplies to China. The deal is part of $3.5 billion worth of trade agreements signed at a meeting between leaders of the two countries in Beijing.

Romania’s Democratic Liberal Government falls after loosing a vote of no confidence in parliament; the first such collapse since the end of Communist rule in 1989.

South African police fire tear gas and rubber bullets as thousands protest demanding basic services such as sanitation, electricity and housing in several northeastern townships.

Ireland votes “yes” in a second referendum on the Lisbon Treaty, paving the way for the creation of an E.U. president. Ireland had voted “no” in a similar referendum last year, blocking the the implementation of the treaty, which requires unanimous approval.

Greece’s Socialists win a sweeping victory over the center-right ruling party in snap elections, bucking a European trend towards conservative government  exemplified most recently by Germany’s re-election of Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Egypt’s highest Muslim authority says he will issue a religious edict against the wearing of the niqab, a full veil that covers a woman’s face. While headscarfs are widely worn in Egypt, the niqab is a growing trend associated with more radical Islam.

The Dalai Lama visits Washington this week but will not meet with President Obama — the White House postponed a planned meeting with the Tibetan spiritual leader in an apparent attempt to gain favor with China in advance of a summit between President Obama and his Chinese counterpart, Hu Jintao, scheduled for next month.

At rare talks between Iran, the U.S. and other world powers, Iran agrees to allow weapons inspectors into its newly disclosed nuclear plant, and both sides agree to continued negotiations.

The People’s Republic of China celebrates its 60th anniversary by parading military personnel and equipment through downtown Beijing and hosting an evening gala complete with fireworks in Tienanmen Square.

Iraq’s Prime Minister, Nouri al-Maliki, forms a new coalition which brings together Sunni and Shia parties to represent “all Iraqis.”

Addressing world leaders gathered for a U.N. summit on climate change, President Obama declares that the U.S. is “determined to act,” and encourages unity on the issue, saying the world “cannot allow the old divisions that have characterized the climate debate for so many years to block our progress.”

China bans foreign tourists from Tibet ahead of the 60th anniversary of Communist rule in the country, which will be celebrated on October 1 with a military parade, fireworks, and a speech by President Hu Jintao.

Honduran security forces use tear gas to break up demonstrations outside the Brazilian embassy in the Honduran capital Tegucigalpa, where deposed President Manual Zalaya has been since his surprise return to the country yesterday.

A trade dispute between China and the U.S. heats up, as China files a formal complaint with the World Trade Organization over tariffs the U.S. has placed on Chinese tire imports. The Chinese government also took steps towards imposing its own tariffs on U.S. exports of chicken and automotive products.

Iran agrees to begin talks with six major world powers on October 1st, but President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reiterates that Iran’s “inalienable rights” to a nuclear program are not on the negotiating table.

Nearly 20 women and children are suffocated and killed in a stampede while waiting in line for free flour handouts in Karachi, Pakistan.

Norwegians vote in what is expected to be a close race between the ruling left-leaning government and right-wing opposition parties opposed to the country’s high taxes and liberal policies on immigration.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown helps initiate a raid on Taliban fighters in Afghanistan that frees New York Times reporter Stephen Farrell. The journalist and his interpreter, who was killed in the raid, were kidnapped on Saturday. Britain offers to host an international conference on Afghanistan to set targets for transferring security responsibilities from foreign forces to Afghan authorities.

The only son of the late president Corazon Aquino announces he will run for president of the Philippines in next year’s election. Benigno Aquino III adapts his mother’s signature color of yellow when he reveals his candidacy.  Current president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is in her final term and cannot run again.

Three days after China’s government proclaims coal mine safety to be a priority, a gas explosion at an unlicensed mine in central China kills at least 35 workers and traps 44. Officials respond by arresting and suspending 13 officials and mine managers.

Japan’s new ruling Democratic Party finalizes a deal to form a coalition with two small parties whose help it needs to pass laws quickly. The Democratic Party of Japan needs the backing of the Social Democrats and the conservative People’s New Party to maintain control of the nation’s parliament. The coalition is set to launch next week.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel says her government “deeply regrets” any loss of innocent life in Friday’s controversial air strike by U.S. jets that was ordered by German commanders, but calls on critics to withhold judgement until full details of the incident are known. At least 60 villagers may have been killed in the attack on two stolen oil tankers near Kunduz, according to the watchdog group Afghan Rights Monitor.

Three British Islamic extremists are convicted by a jury in the U.K. of plotting to kill thousands of people using liquid bombs on seven transatlantic flights. The 2006 plot included a plan to commit suicide attacks using explosives disguised as soft drinks.

Several days of torrential rains and flooding displace 600,000 people in 16 West African nations. Burkina Faso, Senegal, Ghana and Niger are among the worst hit as the flooding cuts off electricity and causes the closure of hospitals. Pumps to remove water from flooded areas are in short supply.

A Sudanese journalist is released from jail after she was convicted of “dressing indecently” by wearing trousers. Lubna Ahmed Hussein was imprisoned after she refused to pay a $200 fine because she did not want to “give the verdict any legitimacy.” Her colleagues paid the fine on Monday.

Two employees of a Walmart in China are arrested for allegedly beating to death a woman accused of shoplifting. The August 30 attack in the city of Jingdezhen occurred outside the woman’s home after she refused to show a receipt to the employees. She died three days later.

Thousands gather in Tehran to mourn the death of a leading Iraqi Shi’ite cleric and politician, whose passing may intensify political turmoil ahead of Iraq’s national elections. Abdul Aziz al-Hakim headed the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council, one of Iraq’s most powerful Shi’ite parties. Several car bombs erupt in Baghdad ahead of the return of his body to the city for a funeral procession there.

The outgoing head of the U.N.-African Union peacekeeping force in Darfur defends his soldiers against persistent criticism of their effectiveness, and insists they have ended the massacres that long plagued the Sudanese region.

Hours after Taiwan’s president announces a planned trip by the Dalai Lama to Taiwan, Chinese officials say they oppose the visit. China accuses him of advocating independence for Tibet. The Dalai Lama is expected to visit some areas in southern Taiwan that were hardest hit by Typhoon Morakot.

Afghan officials delay releasing further results from the nation’s disputed presidential election, and analysts expect the contest to undergo a second round. With 17 percent of votes counted, President Hamid Karzai leads his main rival, former foreign minister Abdullah Abdullah, by about 43 percent to 34 percent. The final tally is expected in late September.

China launches a national organ donation system in a bid to shake off its dependence on executed prisoners as a major source of organs for transplants and as part of efforts to crack down on organ trafficking. The system will mainly be operated by the Red Cross Society of China, and begins as a pilot project in 10 provinces and cities.

As its presence in Africa grows, so has criticism of the methods China uses to secure the continent’s wealth. Western governments have criticized China for ignoring gross human rights violations and securing exploitative terms in its trade deals. And African governments have criticized China for giving overwhelming preference to Chinese workers at the expense of locals when hiring for the many infrastructure projects funded by China.

Despite the criticism, China appears to be in Africa to stay. It will become the continent’s largest trading partner by 2011, and China now depends on Africa for 30% of its oil. But oil is just the tip of the iceberg. Click on the map icons below to see where China is active on the African continent, what it hopes to get in return, and the inevitable tensions that have arisen as its footprint gradually grows. Where icons overlap, zoom in on the map to see further details. All statistics refer to Sub-Saharan Africa.

Note: While Western governments have expressed concern about China’s expansion into Africa, China still remains a relatively small player compared to the West. In 2008, it exported only 9 percent of Africa’s oil while Europe and the U.S. exported 36 percent and 33 percent respectively. And China’s investment of $10 billion in African oil infrastructure is less than one tenth of the $168 billion spent by other international companies, such as Exxon Mobil, Shell and Total.

U.S. State Department: Equatorial Guinea
Information about Equatorial Guinea’s people, history and foreign relations.

CIA World Factbook: Equatorial Guinea
Information about Equatorial Guinea’s geography, population, government and economy.

BBC News Country Profile: Equatorial Guinea
Information on Equatorial Guinea’s politics and history, with links to the BBC archive of stories on the country.

Equatorial Guinea’s Government Website
The official website of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea.

ECONOMY & DEVELOPMENT

U.S. Census Bureau Data on Trade with Equatorial Guinea
Annual reports on the U.S. trade with Equatorial Guinea.

U.S. Energy Information Administration Data on Oil Trade with Equatorial Guinea
Energy statistics of how much oil Equatorial Guinea trades with the United States.

World Bank Report on Development Indicators
Data on Equatorial Guinea’s progress in meeting the U.N. Millennium Development Goals.

2004 COUP ATTEMPT

BBC News: Timeline of the 2004 Coup
A thorough recap of significant events in the development of the coup.

Vanity Fair: Black Sheep, Big Trouble
An in-depth article on the big players involved in the coup.

GENERAL INTEREST

Council on Foreign Relations: China, Africa, and Oil
Report on how China has turned to Africa as its main source of oil despite the continent’s risks and challenges.

LA Times: Oil Boom Enriches African Ruler
Ken Silverstein’s article that led to the senate investigations of President Obiang’s Riggs Bank accounts.

Fast Company: China’s New Oil Supplier
An award-winning series of articles on China’s presence in Equatorial Guinea and the rest of Africa.

Mother Jones: A Touch of Crude
Report on how the pursuit of oil is propping up President Obaing’s control of Equatorial Guinea.

Human Rights Watch: Well Oiled
A 2009 report on oil and human rights in Equatorial Guinea.

Millions of ballots are being counted in Afghanistan’s second presidential election. Afghan officials say that voter turnout was good despite violence targeted at polling stations, but election observers suggest less than 50 percent of eligible voters went to the polls.

North Korea plans to send a high-level delegation to South Korea to pay respects to former South Korean President Kim Dae-jung, who died Tuesday.

More than 1,300 children are poisoned by lead pollution from a new, unlicensed manganese smelter in China’s Hunan province. This is the second mass lead poisoning incident in China in the past month.

EDITOR
Edward Radford

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
Roy Ackerman

NARRATOR
Jay O. Sanders

CAMERA
Jeremy Pollard/Equatorial Guinea
Andrew James/South Africa
Elliot Klayman/U.S.A.

CAMERA ASSISTANT
Nathan Kendall

ARCHIVE
ITN Source/Reuters
Werner Herzog Film

ARCHIVE RESEARCH
Alex Buxton

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The Asylum Production Company, Cape Town
Fundación para las Relaciones Internacionales
y el Diálogo Exterior, Madrid
Interface Media Group, Washington, D.C.
Tyler Camera Systems

ONLINE EDITOR
Adam Dolniak

COLORIST
Chris Rodgers

DUBBING MIXER
Jerome O’Donohue

PRODUCTION
Cecile Antonie
Fiona Govan

CONSULTANTS
Mark Hollingsworth
Alex Yearsley

SENIOR ASSOCIATE PRODUCER
Michael Chrisman

PRODUCTION MANAGER
Isabel Davis

HEAD OF OPERATIONS
Jo Ralling

HOST INTRO

DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
Kevin Cloutier

ADDITIONAL CAMERA
Adam Vardy

SOUND
daniel Brooks

GAFFER
Theo Caris

TELEPROMPTER
Debby Hastings

MAKEUP
Janet Cassidy

FOR WIDE ANGLE

STORY PRODUCERS
Charlotte Mangin
Jeff Seelbach

ASSOCIATE PRODUCERS
Lauren Geller
Rawan Jabaji
Lucy Kennedy

SERIES EDITOR
Mark Sutton

SOUND MIX
Doug Johnson

POST-PRODUCTION SUPERVISOR
Sonoko Aoyagi Leopold

PROJECT MANAGER
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MULTIMEDIA PRODUCERS
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Renee Feltz

PRODUCTION INTERNS
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ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT
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ASSISTANT EDITOR
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GRAPHIC DESIGN
vanOs
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SERIES TITLE DESIGN
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MUSIC
Douglas J. Cuomo

ON-AIR PROMOTION
Rob Issen
Jed Parker

LEGAL
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Blanche Robertson

PUBLICITY
Gloria Park
Kellie Specter

SENIOR PRODUCER
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EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
Tom Casciato

A production of Fresh One Productions for THIRTEEN and WNET.ORG in association with British Broadcasting Corporation and BBC Worldwide

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All Rights Reserved

This program was produced by Fresh One Productions and THIRTEEN which are solely responsible for its content

As Typhoons Morakot and Etau continue to wreak havoc in Asia, nearly one million people are evacuated from China’s eastern coastal provinces, at least 13 are killed in western Japan, and hundreds are missing after landslides hit the village of Xialin in Taiwan.

President Barack Obama meets with Mexican President Felipe Calderón and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper in Guadalajara, Mexico, for the forth annual summit of North American leaders. Major issues to be discussed include the economic crisis, the swine flu pandemic, the drug trade, climate change and immigration.

At least two civilians and three police officers are killed in Taliban attacks on government buildings near Kabul, just 10 days before Afghanistan’s elections, which members of the Taliban have vowed to disrupt.