his return from China, produced a seminal work entitled "Australia and the North-East Asian Ascendancy". Australia has been engaged with, and invested in, the Asian region for decades now. But as the Prime Minister noted when she launched the White Paper process, in relation to the current situation and likely future developments: "Australia hasn't been here before." And so the Government sought to ask what Australia should be doing about these developments. What are the key take-aways from the White Paper? There is much analysis this paper that will be familiar to those in this room -- the first four chapters are devoted to describing what it terms the "extraordinary rise of Asia over recent decades". Your working life as correspondents posted in this region is, after all, focused on analysing the very changes, trends and policy settings that this section of the White Paper outlines. As such, I will seek not to belabour the issues with which you are familiar. The Paper sets out 25 national objectives to the year 2025, grouped across five broad areas: - first, a productive and resilient Australian economy; - second, building capabilities through education and training; - third, operating in and connecting with growing Asian markets; - fourth, building comprehensive and sustainable security in the region; and - fifth, deeper and broader international relationships. It turn, the Paper proposes that these national objectives be guided by a comprehensive series of "pathways". These "pathways" set out specific actions or recommendations to be implemented across