Background:
Upon independence in 1960, the former French region of Middle Congo
became the Republic of the Congo. A quarter century of
experimentation with Marxism was abandoned in 1990 and a
democratically elected government installed in 1992. A brief civil
war in 1997 restored former Marxist President SASSOU-NGUESSO, but
ushered in a period of ethnically based unrest. Southern-based rebel
groups agreed to a final peace accord in March 2003. The Republic of
Congo is one of Africa's largest petroleum producers with
significant potential for offshore development.