The first "Great Game" between Tsarist Russia and Britain was never cricket. It was a battle of wits and wills, and often a deadly one. For much of the 19^th century, these two powers fought a secret war across Central Asia, vying for the allegiance of powerful khans. Russia was expanding its empire and Britain was determined to protect the jewel in its colonial crown - India. Espionage came into its own at this time, and every imaginable disguise was put to use, whether that of a mendicant monk or camel trader.

The British writer, Rudyard Kipling, immortalised the term "Great Game" in his novel Kim in 1901, at a time when Central Asia was seen by many strategists as the geopolitical centre of the world.

Now, in the early part of another century, the battle's on again. But this time it's not so much for control of territory as it is for access to the region's rich reserves of oil and gas, as well as to its abundance of minerals. Also tantalising are its markets and huge reserves of petro-dollars, which more and more are being pumped into infrastructure projects as large numbers of people move into urban areas and demand electricity, water, transportation and telecommunications.

The axis that runs through the region extends from Shanghai to Istanbul, and for much of its length follows the route of the ancient Silk Road. Nowadays it is increasingly crisscrossed by pipelines and railways, for which reason some call it the "Iron Silk Road". The Stans - once part of the underbelly of the old Soviet Union - straddle this corridor, with a resurgent Russia across the top, China at one end and India below.

Symbolic of the new dialogue in the region is the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) that was set up in 2001 by Russia and China, with Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan as members. India, Iran, Pakistan and Mongolia have observer status. Originally a loose security alliance, it now covers energy, nuclear power, the fight against organised crime and terrorism, plus health and education.

The SCO hardly ranks alongside APEC and NATO, but in the not too distant future it might. It stands alongside the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO), which is Russian-led and has almost the same membership as the Shanghai grouping, though without China.

Across the region, economic development is the name of the game, which is drawing in skills from around the globe. There is a huge and varied requirement for engineers, accountants, IT experts, teachers, scientists and linguists. Interestingly, Australia provides a fair share. We're not only qualified but also widely recognised as pragmatic and adaptable.

How this new Great Game plays out over coming decades is no certain thing. Some see friction coming from Russian insecurity and Chinese insensitivity, while others see the momentum of economic development across the Asian continent eventually sucking North Korea into its vortex. Already, the Russians are keen to start on a major project of refurbishment for a 50 km rail link between the North Korean port of Rajin and the Trans-Siberian grid. This involves a multi-billion dollar development of Rajin as a container port.

At the other end of the line, Kuwait is talking about funding a railway up through Damascus and Baghdad and across Iran to China.

Rather than the 21^st century being an Asia-Pacific one, we're increasingly seeing the centre of geopolitical gravity moving west, back towards where Kipling set his much-read novel. If he were alive today, he'd no doubt be working on a completely new version.

Warren Reed has spent much of his professional life in the Asian region and was for three years chief operating officer of CEDA, the Committee for Economic Development of Australia.