From Our Own Correspondent - 17/07/2010

From Our Own correspondent sips cold beer by the Amazon with a British missionary who's so angered the authorities in Peru they're trying to have him expelled. The Balkan republic of Montenegro is one of Europe's newest independent nations. And being a small state in a difficult neighbourhood, it's keen to make some powerful friends. Some believe that becoming a member of the NATO military club might be the answer to Montenegro's security worries. But there's a problem. As Humphrey Hawksley explains, not so long ago..for Montenegrins...NATO was very much the enemy. When the Peruvian government looks at the Amazon jungle, it sees vast potential. Money is being poured into mining and other projects. But the Peruvian Amazon's indigenous people see the jungle very differently. It sustains their way of life, and they fear that those who exploit the rainforest will do terrible damage. And the tribes have found an ally..a British missionary. His campaign to protect the jungle so angered the government that it ordered his expulsion. A judge overturned the order, but the authorities are appealing his decision. Our correspondent Dan Collyns set off for the remote city of Iquitos, and a meeting with Peru's troublesome priest.. As he rose to power the French President, Nicolas Sarkozy cast himself as bringer of change. He presented himself as a moderniser -- a man ready to break with tradition. And if past French presidents always seemed rather remote and aloof..then Mr Sarkozy's style has certainly been rather different. He's always been more than ready to engage with .. and try to use... the media to his own ends. Emma Jane Kirby been considering the often fraught relationship between the president and the press...and it's impact on French journalism. At first glance, the desert shores of north Africa have very little in common with the much greener coastlines of northern Europe and North America. But with a bit of imagination, you might just begin to see connections....in geological terms at least. The mountains of Morocco, Scotland and New England all sit on the rim of the vast basin that is the North Atlantic. And as Simon Winchester has been finding out, there are plans now to link these very different locations in an extraordinary way....