War & Peace Quote by Jacques Chirac

Terrorism, for Chirac, isn`t a spike of chaos; it`s a method, almost an industry standard for a new kind of conflict. Calling it a "systematic weapon" drags the phenomenon out of the realm of pathology or fanaticism and into strategy. That choice matters: if terrorism is a weapon, then it belongs to a war - and wars demand doctrine, alliances, intelligence-sharing, budgets, and legal architecture. The line quietly argues for the expansion of state capacity at home and coordination abroad, while framing opponents as something closer to a network than an army.

"A war that knows no borders" is the crucial upgrade. Chirac is naming globalization`s dark mirror: the same porousness that moves capital and people also moves violence, ideology, and money. The phrase primes the public to accept measures that stretch beyond the traditional nation-state toolkit, because the battlefield has already stretched. It also situates France not as uniquely targeted but as one node in a shared vulnerability, an invitation to multilateralism with a hard edge.

"Seldom has a face" adds the moral and political sting. If the enemy is faceless, retaliation can easily become misdirected, suspicion becomes ambient, and accountability gets blurry. Chirac is warning about an adversary designed to evade the classic rituals of war - uniforms, fronts, surrender - while also justifying why governments may feel compelled to act in ways that are less visible and more preventive. The subtext is a tightrope: rally resolve without promising clarity, and prepare citizens for a long fight where certainty is the first casualty.