Well, if the same countries are part of both trade pacts, then there is no effective containment of China.Should they join the TPP as well?
Another way to look at it, China would then backdoor into TPP via RCEP.
So it would be a whole lot of paperwork for nothing.
Additionally, the original TPP was going to establish a court of arbitration in New York. With diminished trade volumes, how can the United States reinstate TPP with the same terms?
If you go by McKinsey's number and projections, (page ~51+), it looks like China is on a A2 glide path (if not better), while US is on B2. With that trend line, China will capture all the world s FDI for 2-3 years, which will significantly power its innovation for the next decade. By contrast, US has little to offer its trade partners. The world has changed dramatically since 2016.

