The conference on which this book is based was made possible by an Australian Research Council (ARC) Linkage Grant (with the Department of Defence as ‘industry partner’), awarded to the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre in 2005. The editor is indebted to the ARC and the Department of Defence for this support.

In addition to the authors represented in this volume, a number of people made an invaluable contribution as panellists or discussants to the broader dialogue that took place during the course of the conference. The editor would like to express his gratitude to the following people in this regard: Dr Doug Kean from the Office of National Assessments; Dr Rod Lyon and Dr Mark Thomson from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute; Dr Malcolm Cook from the Lowy Foundation; and Professor Robin Jeffrey, Professor Hugh White, Professor Paul Dibb, Professor Geremie Barme, Professor Anthony Milner, Admiral (Rtd) Chris Barrie and Dr Richard Brabin-Smith, all from The Australian National University.