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The Silicon Shield is real, but it’s also overrated. Both Washington and Beijing have a strong interest in TSMC continuing to function. Neither side wants to be cut off from advanced chips. China has spent enormous sums trying to build a domestic alternative, with limited success at the leading edge. The U.S. passed the CHIPS Act and is subsidizing TSMC fabs in Arizona and elsewhere. But Taipei has banned TSMC from making its most advanced chips abroad, so the bleeding edge stays on the island for the foreseeable future. That mutual dependence does create a deterrent against the most catastrop