There was a long period even upto early 2024, which I pointed out at the time, where simply destroying ASML, TSMC and much of NVIDIA would've been more than enough to give at least a decade of breathing room. This was something a group of determined people willing to self-sacrifice could've accomplished. It didn't happen, but it was anything but impossible.

Now, of course, the horse has long bolted, and there is indeed no stop left.

Two high altitude (~1000 km) detonations of high yield fission or low yield fusion (few hundred kT equivalent) would do it, one above Amarillo, the other above the ocean half way between the Paracel Islands and Manila.

Trump has ordered the restart of nuclear weapon testing, has a problem with China, and is surrounded by sychophants; what's the odds this happens anyway, irregardless of which specific sub-goal is being persued when the button gets pushed?

Bit unfortunate for the tens or hundreds of millions of lives that costs, rather than the <1,000, potentially even <20, it would've taken early last year.