Lesson 24 – War & Peace

When a war begins, we can say that war has broken out or violence has erupted in the region. When one country officially enters into a state of war, then they have declared war on the enemy country.

Sometimes, one country performs a pre-emptive strike (an early attack) against another – for example, if it suspects that the other country is stockpiling weapons (creating a collection of weapons) that will be used for a future attack. The other country may view this as an unprovoked attack (an unfair attack without a reason), and tensions may rise until the area is on the brink of war – meaning that war is very probable.

Sending in the military is often called deploying troops. The soldiers may be stationed/posted in a certain area to protect it, or they may launch an offensive in which they storm/invade enemy territory. When the soldiers begin firing their guns, we say that they opened fire.

Unfortunately, the horrors of war affect everyone, as innocent people are always caught in the crossfire (in the middle of the violence without participating in it). Both sides are sure to suffer civilian casualties (when innocent people are injured or killed) and there will be collateral damage to the countries’ infrastructure. War also results in many refugees displaced by the violence; they may resettle in another area or flee to another country.

If a particular battle was an important turning point in the war, then it is called a decisive battle. Sometimes another country intervenes and helps the two sides negotiate a truce/ceasefire (agree to stop fighting). If successful, this can restore peace – but it may be a fragile/uneasy peace. More work will still be needed to bring stability to the area and establish a lasting peace. Often, peacekeeping forces remain in the region to try to avert war (avoid war).