I'm going to make three points.
The first is this: I want to give a somewhat different characterization of China's interest in the CPTPP. In my view, China's interest in the CPTPP has more to do with its concern that, if the United States should come to a position where it joins again, China will be cut out. From China's standpoint, I think it's important that it join before this happens. If it were to join before Taiwan, I think Mr. Stephens' point is correct. It would have greater influence in a consensus organization. Establishing and clarifying what the rules of ascension are would be very important. In that sense, it is about making decisions in terms of the six states that have applied to join.
The second question is in terms of the other ASEAN states. As was noted, only three ASEAN states are part of the CPTPP. Not all states are equipped to join the CPTPP. One of the important reasons for the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership was that the original TPP—and now the CPTPP—made it very challenging for the least developed members of ASEAN to participate. Again, for Southeast Asian members of ASEAN, it is important not to leave a member behind.
The third question you asked is also a good one. Canada is a close partner and ally of the United States. Would that not taint Canada by association? I don't think it would, necessarily. It depends on how you do it. Japan is actually the model. It is extremely close to the United States. Those who have been studying Japanese foreign policy know, for example, that Japan has been extremely influential in terms of some of the specific content of the Indo-Pacific strategy. However, if you look at different assessments of Japan and Southeast Asia, Japan is among the most trusted external powers. That's partly because Japan listens to Southeast Asian states. Therefore, the content it's also conveying in terms of how it has influenced some of the direction in getting greater Southeast Asian buy-in is trying to inject some of those things it's hearing from the region. Canada could do that, too. I don't think it necessarily means you're tainted by association.