It’s not often that the opening of an embassy makes the news but in this case there’s something a little different … it’s a virtual one.

That’s right. The Scandinavian nation has opened an embassy in Second Life, and it launched with great fanfare by a virtual ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by Foreign Minister Carl Bildt.

Even more unusual perhaps is that Sweden isn’t the first country to open an embassy in Second Life - that honour went to the Maldives.