"Just after resigning as US secretary of state, there was a ring at Colin Powell's front door. Standing outside, with a gift of a 1995 Jaguar, was none other than Prince Bandar, his country's Ambassador to the White House and son of one of the seven sons of the favourite wife of the founder of Saudi Arabia. Alma, Mr Powell's wife, had once told the Ambassador how much she missed driving around DC in her 10-year-old Jaguar, which she said her husband had sold on. Prince Bandar had noted the information and then bought the Powells an identical car as a gift.Prince Bandar, or Bandar Bush as he was known, was for decades the most influential Ambassador in Washington. He had especially close relations with the Bush family and top tier US politicians."