You actually claimed: >> The PRC exerts indirect control over Taiwan's economy by pressuring its trading partners, so the distinction is academic. That's not

You actually claimed: >> The PRC exerts indirect control over Taiwan's economy by pressuring its trading partners, so the distinction is academic. That's not what happens. What does happen is China pressures international bodies like the UN and the Olympic committee to pretend if they want to talk to Taiwan, they must talk to only China. But it has mainly cosmetic effect... eg, despite all that effort, Taiwanese passports (not issued by China) are recognized almost everywhere except China https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiwan_passport#Limitations_in_usage https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiwan_passport#Limitations_in... Of course the nuclear-armed mainland is bigger and scarier than a small island of 20-something million with only conventional forces. But China has not been suppressing Taiwan's trade as you wrongly said, it has been encouraging and benefitting from it to the point it's the #1 partner with double the value of the US.