Regardless, I think understanding the reason why another person/nation/entity thinks and acts the way they do is helpful for your own success.
Humans generally believe in, endorse, and engage in acts of genocide and slavery.
China truly believes the people of Taiwan belong to them.
That we, through our institutions, try to believe in, adopt, and defend the concept of human rights... places us directly at odds with human nature. And all nations not subscribed to our notion of human rights will default to regular human behavior. Placing us not just at odds with, but on a war footing on competing ideas. One side thinks human lives should mean something. The other.... uses waves of humans as meat for an offensive to take another's land.
If there wasn't an ocean, China would have settled this decades ago using the same method, to achieve the same results. Different people, same story again and again.
Now that the US is in decline, our navy will no longer oppose China's ambition to kill others. It is inevitable that some day this WILL occur. And like with Russia, much of the world will collectively yawn and say "but China does good business".