"It does not matter whether the war is actually happening, and, since no decisive victory is possible, it does not matter whether the war is going badly. All th

"It does not matter whether the war is actually happening, and, since no decisive victory is possible, it does not matter whether the war is going badly. All that is needed is that a state of war should exist." There was the implication that the wars are not truly being fought, such as in the quote above. That was my interpretation anyway. War is never actually witnessed by the protagonist, it's just used as a rationalisation of various actions by the state.