Sydney - Prime Minister Kevin said Saturday that his mission was to make Australia "the most Asian-literate nation in the Western world."

"The 21st century will be the Asia Pacific century ... so we need to make sure that in decades ahead we are fully engaged with the region," Rudd told a gathering in Adelaide. "It will be the global powerhouse and there are great opportunities if we engage properly and engage now."

The prime minister said more Australian students should study in other Asian countries to balance the 250,000 Asians currently studying in Australia.

"They become bridges through which we do business later on and this is a very important long-term investment," he said.

Sydney, Sept. 8 : Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s government should harness the nation''s clout as a uranium supplier and its diplomatic ties to Asia and the United States to push for a disarmament declaration by the region''s leaders, a former diplomat has said.

In Lowy Institute paper, former diplomat Rory Medcalf warns that the rise of nuclear energy in Asia combined with persistent national rivalries poses a growing long-term threat to Australia in the so-called "Asian century".

Auckland, Aug. 19 (ANI): Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd believes that the exit of Pervez Musharraf from the Pakistan presidency could pose problems for NATO operations in neighbouring Afghanistan.

Speaking in Auckland today ahead of the Pacific Island Forum in Nuie, Rudd said the key consideration for Australia was the affect of the decision would have on the continuing military campaign in Afghanistan.

There are problems in terms of al-Qaida, we have problems in terms of the Taliban, we have problems in terms of the porous nature of the border, news. com. au quoted Rudd, as saying.

Singapore - Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd was set to kick off his visit Tuesday in Singapore by laying a wreath in remembrance of Allied soldiers who died in South-East Asia during the two world wars.

Rudd, in his first official visit to the city-state as prime minister, was scheduled to meet with the top leaders after visiting Kranji war cemetery.

Melbourne, July 31: Hard to believe, but true! Australia’s Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is a descendant of an 18th-century street urchin accused of "highway robbery" when she was 11 years old.

Rudd’s ancestor, Mary Wade, also escaped a death sentence for stripping another girl of her clothes in an outdoor toilet.

After her transportation to Australia, Mary Wade became a well-known figure in this country.

Kuala Lu