US navy plans `show of force' off oil-rich West Africa

"A US navy battlegroup is to make a ``show of force'' in the oil-rich waters of the Gulf of Guinea, off west Africa, diplomats said Friday, as Washington hones plans to escape its dependence on unstable Middle Eastern supplies by securing more African crude. The foray by a heavily armed carrier group into the waters off Nigeria, Sao Tome, Equatorial Guinea and other African oil producers, comes at a time when fuel prices are topping the US political agenda and security crises in the Gulf region are pushing demands for greater diversification in energy supplies. An Abuja-based US diplomat told AFP on condition of anonymity that the Gulf of Guinea was ``a place where there is not normally an American presence'' and described the operation as ``a show of force.''