Undeclared war

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 92.3.122.135 (talk) at 20:45, 7 July 2016 (Added historical context and precedent for undeclared Korean War. There should probably be more historical examples and context though; for instance the Quasi-War in 1798 was never formally declared.). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

An undeclared war is a military conflict between two or more nations without either side issuing a formal declaration of war. The term is sometimes used to include any disagreement or conflict fought about without an official declaration. Since the United Nations "police action" in Korea followed the example set by the United Kingdom during the so-called Malaysian Emergency, a number of democratic governments have pursued disciplinary actions and limited warfare by characterizing them as something else, such as a "military action" or "armed response". The United States has not formally declared war since World War II. Most notably, the United States never officially declared war during its more than decade-long involvement in Vietnam; the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution authorized the escalation of the Vietnam War without a declaration of war. Nations such as France, which had extensive colonies in which its military provided order, continued to intervene in their former colonies' affairs as police actions.