Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
I wanted to ask some generalized questions about the state of the Sino-Tibetan dialogue from your perspective, Mr. Steil. I apologize for having not heard the first part of members' exchanges with you.
We know that dialogue was ongoing for a certain amount of time from about the mid-2000s to the end of the 2000s. Then around 2010 it came to a standstill.
Can you give us a sense of your understanding of the blockages to restarting the Sino-Tibetan dialogue and the importance of discussions about the middle way approach, which is the approach—you'll be aware obviously—that His Holiness espouses to ensure that there is a compromise between the perceptions of Tibetan independence versus the notion of being completely subsumed within the Chinese federation? It is establishing a compromise, which looks a lot like the way the Canadian federation was established. You just have a region that has greater linguistic, cultural and religious autonomy, but within the broader Chinese federation and broader Chinese constitution.
Could you give us an update on that piece and your understanding of it from the GAC perspective?