Thailand has a population of about 70 million. Myanmar has a population of about 55 million. Cambodia has a population of about 17 million. These are countries that are within an order of magnitude of the size of Canada's population. We are also an economy that's much larger than countries like that, where we could have an outsized influence.
In practical terms, the government's Indo-Pacific strategy acknowledges that issue of scale. It focuses particularly on the north Indo-Pacific in terms of economic strategy by focusing on places like Japan and South Korea. It has a special mention of diplomatic outreach in the island chains in the Indo-Pacific. I think that's all predicated on an acknowledgement that Canada is not the world's largest country by population and not the second-largest country by population.
With the limited resources we bring to bear, how can we use them most effectively in the region? The government has decided that with respect to certain areas of this strategy, there will be a focus on the north Indo-Pacific. In other areas, they've decided to focus on ASEAN.
The question I have is, with respect to democratic backsliding when it comes to Southeast Asia—the part of the Indo-Pacific that organizations like the Hudson Institute have identified as the greatest weakness, and particularly countries like Thailand, Myanmar and Cambodia—what practical actions can the government take to stop the backsliding and strengthen democratic institutions in those areas and in those countries?
Maybe we could go to Madam Wang.