The silent treatment isn’t calm. It’s yelling with the volume turned off.

Withdrawal can carry as much force as shouting, and it is harder to answer because nothing has officially been said. The other person is left guessing at the charge, the sentence and the length of it. Calling it calm is what makes it effective, since anyone who objects looks like the one causing the scene.

If you have gone quiet on someone, say the thing you are actually angry about, even badly. If someone has gone quiet on you, name what you notice without accusing them of strategy. A short sentence breaks the standoff faster than waiting it out.