"War is the continuation of politics." In this sense war is politics and itself is a political action; since ancient times there has never been a war that did not have a political character…
But war has its own particular characteristics and in this sense it cannot be equated with politics in general. “War is the continuation of politics by other…means.” When politics develops to a certain stage beyond which it cannot proceed by the usual means, war breaks out to sweep the obstacles from the way… When the obstacle is removed and our political aim attained, the war will stop. But if the obstacle is not completely swept away, the war will have to continue till the aim is fully accomplished… It can therefore be said that politics is war without bloodshed while war is politics with bloodshed.
"On Protracted War" (May 1938), Selected Works, Vol. II, pp. 152-53.*
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