By Ahn Choong-yong Chinese President Xi Jinping made global headlines at the APEC summit on Nov. 20, 2020 by announcing that China was considering joining the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), which came into effect in December 2018. The news came amid a likely reconfiguration of the Asia-Pacific trade landscape due to unabated trade tensions between the United States and China and the conclusion of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) five days prior to the announcement. Significantly deviating from former U.S. President Donald Trump's "America first" policy, the Biden administration is returning to global governance by reviving multilateral institutions, including the Paris Agreement, the World Health Organization and the World Trade Organization (WTO). The Joe Biden administration's pivot back to Asia might see the U.S. revisit the CPTTP, after mending urgent domestic affairs, including public anti-globalization sentiment.